It's not an easy time for movie theaters. People aren't fans of packing into crowded rooms at the moment. Can't say we blame them.
Even a few new movies here and there aren't enough to bring people back in numbers needed to save theaters. And movie chains across the country have been doing their best to tread water for the last year. But the buzzer just rang for one company that ran out of time.
"Alamo Drafthouse Cinema did everything it could to weather the covid-19 pandemic," Variety reports. "It furloughed most of the staff, cut pay for those who remained, rented out theaters for private events, paused costly development projects, leaned on its merchandising business to keep revenue coming in, and launched an on-demand movie service. In the end, it was not enough. The company--the largest privately held theater chain in the U.S.--filed for bankruptcy protection on Wednesday morning."
It's a shame because we've always wanted to see one of these open in Arkansas. According to a colleague who's visited Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas, the theaters offer good food and drinks and a solid movie experience. But now it doesn't seem likely we're going to get one.
There's no telling when people will feel comfortable going back to the movies; maybe once everybody gets vaccinated, which is still a few months off.
At least one chain seemed to hit a string of luck. During all the stock market craziness with Gamestop, AMC Theatres also caught the attention of social media investors who started buying up its stock. Its price rose, and The Los Angeles Times reports that helped AMC out a little bit.
"AMC on Wednesday said it had raised $304.8 million by selling 63.3 million shares at an average of $4.80 a piece. AMC's shares traded more than 1.2 billion times on Wednesday, compared with a three-month average daily volume of 74 million, according to FactSet. Still, Wall Street analysts who follow the major theater companies say the stock's rise helped, though it's hard to know how much."
Executives at theater chains like Cinemark and Regal were probably looking at that stock action and wishing they could have gotten some of it as well.
Sometime later this year, we'll head back to the movies. But what fans of Alamo Drafthouse will see when they return has yet to be determined.