Masks Required at Theaters, Fandango Launches Theater Resource Guide
By Allyson Vannatta, Senior Writer
Movie theaters released guidelines for reopening, and most major chains will require attendees to wear masks.
Cinemark and Regal announced their guidelines first, with AMC, the largest theater chain, following suit later.
All theaters detailed their new sanitary and social distancing practices, with most chains initially not including masks unless they were required per local governments.
Then late last week, AMC and Regal both backtracked their no-mask policies and decided to require moviegoers to wear masks.
Cinemark has not yet changed its position on patrons not having to wear masks.
Joseph G. Allen, assistant professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, tweeted that he helped AMC “course correct” their decision.
On AMC and masks (THREAD)
I have been strongly recommending universal mask wearing since I first spoke with AMC
After their release yesterday, I continued to engage with them into the night and today, to help them course correct
They changed their decisionhttps://t.co/xQbbZtdIjV
— Joseph Allen (@j_g_allen) June 19, 2020
Wall Street analyst Eric Wold of B. Riley FBR said, “Requiring customers to wear face masks is a smart business practice. We are still in uncertain times. There is obviously a fine line between trying to protect your guests and scaring your guest.”
In an effort to help eager moviegoers know the proper guidelines, Fandango announced a new service that will include safety information.
The service includes, “Mask and protective-equipment policies and enhanced cleaning measures being implemented at more than 100 theater chains. There’s also a special search filter to find reopened cinemas by location.”
Fandango president Paul Yanover said,
“Our mission has always been super-serving fans with their entertainment needs, and we cannot wait to help fans get back to the big screen safely and at the right time. It’s a complicated rollout, with various states, cities and counties opening their venues in different phases. We hope Fandango will serve as a helpful one-stop resource for fans to find all the information and services they need for a comfortable return to their local theaters.”
Theaters will premiere new Hollywood titles starting with Russell Crowe’s thriller UNHINGED on July 10, Sony’s romantic comedy THE BROKEN HEARTS GALLERY July 17, followed by Disney’s MULAN (2020) July 24, and Christopher Nolan’s TENET on July 31.
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