Posted in: Box Office, Movies | Tagged: 4DX, amc, Avatar: The Way Of Water, Dolby Cinemas, IMAX, regal cinemas

Theaters Need To Build More Premium Screens As Fast As Possible

Theaters were packed all weekend as Avatar: The Way of Water finally came to theaters, though the domestic opening may have been a smidge lower than most expected. That is not an indication of interest, however, as the film got an "A" CinemaScore, and one type of show sold out more than 70% of its screens. That would be premium format screens. Your IMAX, 4DX, Dolby Cinemas, and those showings were pretty much the toughest weekend ticket, especially in major cities. The problem right now is that there are just not enough of these screens, and theaters should be panic-building a ton of them right now.

Theaters Should Have Been Ahead Of This

When the shutdowns of 2020 took place, theaters became one of the lightning rods, as the thought of sitting in close proximity to many others and breathing the same air seemed like a bad idea to most. As the world opened back up and theaters reopened, they found success with re-releases of classic films like Jurassic Park in a premium format, which helped keep the lights on. A worrying trend appeared as wide releases of new films started to happen again. While we still see massive weekends, ticket sales were down 30%. Fewer people are going to the movies, and it is clear that a trip to theaters is more of a special event for families than in the last ten years or so.

And when they are going, they want the full experience. The biggest screen, the best sound, and the best they can get for their money. That means premium format. The problem with this is two-fold. One, there are not nearly enough screens for demand. I live in Ohio, close to Cleveland, and in my area of theaters, there is one IMAX screen, one 4DX, and two Dolby Cinema screens. None of them have had a single ticket available for Avatar since the day it opened. Why theaters didn't spend the pandemic shutdowns reformatting some more auditoriums for premium tickets is beyond me. Sure, it costs money, but they could easily made it back. Theaters are not usually run by the most forward-thinking individuals, however.

The other problem can also be solved by more screens as well. We keep seeing some of these tentpole event films moving all over the schedule because they cannot get booked time to get on said premium format screens. Again, using Avatar as an example, that film will have the screens booked all the way until Ant-Man opens in February. Let's say by then, the legs on Avatar were not as strong as everyone assumes. Those screens are wasted. If the theaters had more premium screens, more event films could play on them, which means more money for everyone, without unsold seats for weeks.

Moviegoing is moving more and more towards the premium event business, whether we like it or not. It is past time for theaters to adapt to this and equip themselves for the next evolution in moviegoing properly, or they risk spinning their wheels and this becoming an even bigger problem than it already is.

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