AMC Reaches Deal With Warner Bros For 45 Day Theatrical Window In 2022
It’s a scary, uncertain time for the entire movie industry, and for theater owners in particular. Covid variants coupled with vaccine hesitance is proving unpredictable for an industry built on bringing people together in enclosed spaces, but it seems that AMC and Warner Bros are banking on 2022 being better.
Varietyhas the information shared with AMC and its investors on an earnings call that says the massive theater chain (biggest in America) has reached a deal with Warner Bros for their 2022 slate to be released exclusively in theaters for at least 45 days before appearing on HBO Max.
That means the day and date on HBO Max will be gone next year. If you want to see movies likeThe Batman,Black Adam,The Flash,Aquaman 2, and the nextFantastic Beaststhen you’re either going to have to go see it in theaters or wait a month and a half to watch it at home.
On the one hand, this is good news for movie lovers who value the theatrical experience. On the other, we’re still in a pandemic and, unless a lot of Anti-Vaxx folks change their minds, we could be in a perpetual boom and bust cycle with COVID-19, so who knows what the hell the future looks like.
But Warner Bros is banking on 2022 being better. On top of this new deal with AMC, they recently entered another one with Cineworld, which owns all the Regal Cinemas, for the same 45-day window.
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Maybe that doesn’t affect non-event movies, but for stuff likeThe BatmanandAquaman? Yeah, it won’t be as easy as deciding to load upThe Suicide Squadinstead of paying the extra money to see it big and loud at a theater.
Also of note, that earnings call revealed AMC’s plans to institute Apple Pay, Google Pay, and even the ability to accept Bitcoin for tickets and concessions in 2022 as well.
Now if they’d just make sure all their screens, not just their premium Dolby and IMAX screens, were bright and loud then they’d truly have a good leg up in the fight to pry audiences off their couches.
