National Cinema Week Bringing Even More Movie Theater Deals
National Cinema Week will see smaller regional theater chains offering deals to moviegoers in the hopes of reviving the industry.
Coming after the success of National Cinema Day, a new event called National Cinema Week is set for October 7th-13th. The annual movie event invites moviegoers to celebrate the art of cinema for a special week. According to Deadline, over 1,200 theaters are participating in the event, with many more potentially joining in on the fun.
The dates for National Cinema Week are one week later than what Cinema Week had previously announced back in the spring. Most participating theaters are offering unlimited popcorn. There is also Family Day on Sunday and special rewards and prizes on Monday.
The creator and organizer behind National Cinema Week, Brandon Jones, acknowledged that the special event is only “a fraction” of National Cinema Day. The recent event led by NATO’s nonprofit Cinema Foundation offered moviegoers a full day of $3 movie tickets and concessions on September 3rd. Because Cinema Week is based on smaller regional chains, major film theater chains such as AMC and Regal will not be participating.
Regardless, National Cinema Week will offer a few free tickets to moviegoers. The report from Deadline points out that the event will look to make the most out of new releases such as David O’ Russell’s Amsterdam and others. Participating theater chains include Cinemark, Marcus, B&B Theaters, National Amusements, Studio Movie Grill, CMX Cinemas, and more.
The inaugural 2021 National Cinema Week was said to have exceeded expectations. According to Deadline, 15.5 million tickets were sold. In addition, 10 billion earned media impressions and 20 million in-theater impressions helped label the event as a success.
National Cinema Week comes as many theaters are still trying to rebound after a disastrous two years. The COVID-19 pandemic forced a lot of would-be moviegoers to stay at home. The effects of the global pandemic are still being felt amongst major theater chains, including Regal Cinemas, which recently filed for bankruptcy.
Luckily, a lot of major blockbuster movies are heading toward the big screen. Fans of comic book fare will get the chance to see Black Adam make his feature film debut and the return of Wakanda in Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. While these films will debut after National Cinema Week, they provide a glimmer of hope to the theater chains still hanging by a thread.
National Cinema Week could also help boost interest in movie-going amidst the rise of streaming. With content such as HBO’s House of the Dragon, Netflix’s Stranger Things, and others, there is just a lot of competition on television. The budgets for these shows are also becoming as large as a feature films.
The one thing that National Cinema Week could achieve is convincing audiences that the theatrical experience is still unique. Many still complain about the lack of care and cleaning in movie theaters. The pandemic has made many people think twice before deciding to eat in a dark room filled with strangers.
While it’s great that an event like this is happening, there are so many hurdles the theater chains still have to overcome. Hopefully, National Cinema Week can provide theaters with a much-needed win.
