'This is a real kick in the shorts': Small-town movie theaters owners react to AMC's VOD pact with Universal
’s cinemas before customers can rent them at home. Logan, like many mom-and-pop theater owners across the country, is anxious that the nascent distribution model the powerful Hollywood studio and the world’s biggest exhibition chain have forged could upend their businesses and eat into their bottom lines.Exhibitors point out that much remains to be seen in how the deal shakes out between Universal, AMC and the rest of the movie business.
Independent Cinema Alliance, an organization that advocates on behalf of locally owned theaters, expressed concerns that the decision was made hastily during the pandemic. Movie theaters and studios have been hugely affected by, prompting both sides to make bold moves to keep revenues flowing in the meantime.
Privately, some theater owners have conceded that dramatic change is sometimes necessary to push an aging industry forward. Even before the pandemic forced cinemas to shutter, skeptics claimed that the movie business was running on fumes. They saw a future dominated by Netflix, Disney Plus and other streaming services. That’s not entirely true , but the recent gap between
“One of my two theaters is a second-run, and I have no clue how this is going to affect me,” said Mark O’Meara, who operates two movie theaters in Fairfax, Va. “We always have to wait weeks anyway to get a movie. I might have to go to first-run.” Christopher Escobar, owner of Plaza Theatre in Atlanta, predicts AMC and Universal’s pact will spark “a big reckoning” and could have the potential to actually improve the moviegoing experience.Escobar isn’t worried that some movies might be available on-demand sooner. In fact, he already frequently plays titles after they’re put on digital rental services. He also routinely brings classics back to the big screen, and has even hosted TV events in his theaters.
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