As streaming media has exploded in popularity over the past few decades, fewer and fewer people have seen the point of getting into the car and going to the movie theater.
Despite being a beloved activity that people have adored for well over a hundred years, going to the movies really isn’t what it used to be.
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Add up the price of a ticket or two, overpriced concessions, the cost of driving to and from the theater — not to mention the high possibility of loud groups of kids who don’t mind talking over the entire movie — and it’s just not appealing.
The pandemic hit movie theaters hard, and although America has recovered, the movie theater industry hasn’t.
Related: AMC announces generous offer to win back customers
Typically it made between 10 and 11 billion a year before 2020, but since then, it hasn’t exceeded more than 8 billion, per data from Box Office Mojo.
One way theaters coped with getting people back in theater seats was to entice them with limited-edition merchandise like themed popcorn buckets, which actually did wonders for their bottom line. AMC alone raked in $65 million from sales of this merchandise.
Now AMC has a new idea to change the theater experience. But unlike its innovative collectible popcorn buckets, this will actually add yet another reason to justify staying home on the couch with Netflix.
Your movie date just got longer
We all go to the movies expecting to see trailers before the show starts, and some people even like it that way, knowing if they’re running a bit late, they won’t miss the main event.
AMC has decided this is a good thing, and as of July 1, will now show more pre-movie ads than ever, including “as much as” a whopping five minutes of commercials, as well as a new ad called a “Platinum Spot” that will play before the last few movie trailers you see.
Trailers and other promotions can mean the movie doesn’t start for 25-30 minutes, according to the AMC website.
The advertising decision comes as the result of an agreement AMC made with the National CineMedia ad network, which is the largest of its kind in the U.S.
Related: Regal, AMC make a genius move to get people to the theater
Back in 2019, AMC declined using these ads, despite the fact other chains such as Regal adopted them, saying it believed that moviegoers would react “quite negatively” to them.
But it has since pivoted, saying in a June Bloomberg interview, “While AMC was initially reluctant to bring this to our theaters, our competitors have fully participated for more than five years without any direct impact to their attendance.”
Why AMC is making this move
AMC has had its share of struggles over the past few years. While it’s been slowly recovering since the pandemic, 2024 didn’t pan out so well, with AMC reporting a decline in revenue in 2024’s Q3 and an attendance decline.Â
AMC also announced on July 1 that it had entered into a new agreement with its creditors, which will provide $223 million of new money financing that will be used to refinance its debt.
The agreement will also allow AMC to equitize at least $143 million of its current debt, and has the potential to allow the company to equitize as much at $337 million.
Commenters on social media did not take well to the news of the new ads.
“I would like to warn AMC to expect 25-30 years of me never coming back to their theaters,” said X user TexasPharmD.
“Just another reason to avoid the movies,” X user Laz252 said.
“Stop. I like how they want more people to watch movies, but they’re also still making the experience worse,” X user 360 No One said.
Related: Popular movie theater chain files Chapter 11 bankruptcy
