Even more than usual, all eyes are on AMC Theatres and the company’s future. Sure, there’s plenty of talk about when the cinema chain will reopen its doors globally, but after last week’s regulatory filing, claiming that AMC might not be able to survive the losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, not only are people concerned about when they can watch movies on the big screen again but also if AMC will be there to show them. Well, we still don’t know the full future, but thanks to a recent earnings call, AMC CEO Adam Aron announced when the chain will be fully reopened this summer.
According to THR, Aron said that AMC will be “fully open globally in July.” Of course, that’s timed for the release of the upcoming Christopher Nolan blockbuster, “Tenet,” which is expected to hit theaters on July 17. It’s also a good sign for a company that seems to be teetering on the edge of going out of business, with many wondering how many months AMC can be closed and still be financially okay. Does this mean that AMC will avoid a dismal fate? That’s unclear, as we still don’t know for certain “Tenet” will be released, and we’re still unsure if people are even ready to go back to the cinemas.
Obviously, with AMC announcing plans to be fully open in July, combined with similar comments from Regal Cinemas and Cinemark, it’s safe to say that Warner Bros. will have plenty of theaters available to screen “Tenet” in July. However, with only a month before that expected release date, the studio would have to make a mad dash to market Nolan’s latest and spread awareness not only that the film will arrive in cinemas but that theaters are actually now open for business.
As for the hard numbers, apparently AMC says it experienced a quarterly loss of $2.17 billion due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Compared to a year earlier, which counted a loss of only $130 million, this is a huge, if not completely expected, increase. That said, for a company that was already losing money, the pandemic has been crippling.
Will “Tenet” be enough to change the course for AMC? Or is it too late? We’ll just have to wait and see in July.