Movies theater chains are reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, after city officials in Los Angeles and New York over the weekend ordered cinemas and other venues to close and box office receipts sunk to historic lows.
Shares of AMC Entertainment, owner of the nation's largest chain, plummeted 16% to $2.70 in midday trading Monday. Cinemark Holdings' stock dropped 25% to $11.05, while Imax fell 11% to $9.88. The markets plunged broadly due to worries about the crisis, triggering a halt of trading on Wall Street.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti in a Sunday night video news conference said movie theaters in Los Angeles must close to help slow the spread of the virus.
The closures, which also affect bowling alleys, bars, nightclubs, gyms and fitness centers, went into effect at midnight and run through March 31. Restaurants are closed for dine-in business, but can stay open for take-out and delivery, Garcetti said.
"I want to stress that I have not taken these steps lightly," Garcetti said. "To some, it may feel wrong. But I would say it's exactly when things feel wrong that it's the right time to do them, and when things feel right, it's too late."
The movie theater closures come at a fragile time for the theatrical film business, which was under pressure from changes in moviegoer habits even before the spread of COVID-19. Studio distribution executives, who were not authorized to comment, said the situation is fluid and it is not clear yet how many U.S. theaters are shuttered or how much it will affect business.
The impact, however, is sure to be devastating, at least in the short term. Theaters have already started feeling the pain as many nervous patrons stay home.
Ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada were $55.3 million for all films Friday through Sunday, marking the weakest box office weekend in more than 20 years. Ticket sales for Pixar's "Onward," the biggest movie at the box office currently, plummeted 73% in its second weekend, an especially steep drop for a Disney family film.
All three major new releases _ "I Still Believe," "Bloodshot" and "The Hunt" _ opened with less than $10 million, and all did worse than analysts expected.
So far this year, domestic ticket sales are down 9% compared to the same stretch of time in 2019.
Closed theaters in Los Angeles include ArcLight Hollywood, Regal L.A. Live, the Landmark, TCL Chinese Theatre, Pacific Theatres at the Grove, Alamo Drafthouse DTLA and AMC's Universal City Walk, Woodland Hills, Century City, Marina Del Rey and West Hollywood locations.
Some major Los Angeles area theaters, including AMC's flagship Burbank multiplex and the Pacific Theatres in Glendale, are still accepting patrons, according to the theaters' webpages.
Movie houses in New York City, Massachusetts and Quebec have also shuttered, and studios and exhibitors are bracing for additional closures.
Theaters that remain open have dramatically limited their capacity in order to comply with recommendations on social distancing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
AMC said Monday it will limit attendance to 50 guests for all its showtimes, after previously reducing seating to 50% of each of its auditoriums. The CDC has recommended a limit on gatherings to a maximum of 50.
"The health of our guests and employee teams comes first for AMC," said AMC Chief Executive Adam Aron in a statement. "With this action AMC continues its commitment to adhere to recommendations of the CDC on social distancing, which is an extremely important concept in these unprecedented times."
Dallas-based dine-in exhibitor Studio Movie Grill also reduced seating availability for its theaters, including the location it opened in Glendale last year. Guests will be 10 feet apart, with a maximum of 50 attendees in all its auditoriums, the company said.
"Immediate action is now required," said Studio Movie Grill founder and CEO Brian Schultz. "We are all taking precautions to support a healthy future for everyone for the long term."
