Death of the Cinema?

[blizz01]

Looks like Regal is shuttering all U.S. movie theater locations - including 3 in JAX (Philips, Beaches, and River City Marketplace). 

New Vision is out - and the Fleming Island location is in flux, depending on what AMC decides to do.  In the interim, there's already a rezoning underway at that spot.

Sad times.

[Tacachale]

It is. Theaters have been hit especially hard by this. It's a real blow.

[thelakelander]

The Regal closure is temporary from what I've read.

[blizz01]

I hope so!

[Adam White]

I hate to see the jobs lost. That's a major concern. But I've got to be honest - I kind of hate the cinema. I mean, I enjoy seeing a film on the 'big screen' - I love it. But the experience has got progressively worse and worse over the years. I can't vouch for how it is in Jax these days, but over here, it is so expensive. It's usually over £10 per ticket (for the not-so-great seats - you can pay more and get a better seat). And concessions are ridiculous. But after all that, you still have to sit through commercials - a lot of commercials - before you can watch the film. And I am not talking about trailers - I love those. I mean commercials. Why should you have to sit through commercials if you are PAYING for the film? All in all, you get probably 20 minutes or so of stuff before the actual movie starts. And don't even get me started about the stupidly loud volume.

Job loss aside - if we have fewer Regals or Tinseltowns, it's not terrible. I hope places like Sunray are okay, though.

Yeah, I know - I'm old.

[bl8jaxnative]

Another example of covid19 accelerating changes that had been going on for years.  The industry's had to work hard to keep relevant. 

As other's pointed out, the shutdown is planned to be temporary.  I wouldn't be surprised to see another chunk of Regal's HQ let go as the company searches for ways to make money that doesn't involve showing movies.

[tufsu1]

Another example of covid19 accelerating changes that had been going on for years.  The industry's had to work hard to keep relevant. 

Actually the industry had record revenues last year.

[jaxjags]

According to reports this is because Regal has NO new releases to show. Film releases have been delayed. Other cinema's have contracts with major studios to get films in the near future. Again COVID related but not due to lack of audiences.

[JPalmer]

My family did the Trolls and Mulan on-Demand.  For $20 all-in, you got to watch the movie for 2-days and pop your own popcorn at a fraction of the cost.

[bl8jaxnative]

Another example of covid19 accelerating changes that had been going on for years.  The industry's had to work hard to keep relevant. 

Actually the industry had record revenues last year.

Revenues are up because they've found other revenue sources.  # of tickets sold is back down to where it was  20 years ago.  Given the sheer size of the Millennial generation and Gen Z,  raw ticket sales should be up much higher; not treading water.

They have found some ways to stay relevant and bring in additional revenues.   The problem is most of that came from cranking out concessions.   And what didn't - lent renting out theather for corporate events - has dried up too.

[marcuscnelson]

Seems kinda weird to expect higher ticket sales at this point. Theaters have been redesigned en masse for fewer ticket sales. Those big recliners take up much more space than the old seats.

My generation and the one before are large, but with the sheer volume of content and sources these days, there aren't as many reasons to go see a movie anymore, even before the pandemic. If anything, the fact that they've been able to hit record revenues in spite of the broader challenges of the market is impressive.

[thelakelander]

Cinemark approved for East Arlington

The city issued a building permit Oct. 9 for the 14-screen Cinemark theater in the Atlantic North shopping center at northwest Kernan and Atlantic boulevards in East Arlington.

J. Raymond Construction Corp. is the contractor for the $8.74 million project.

Cinemark requested the permit in November, four months before governments closed down the economy because of the coronavirus pandemic. Restrictions have been lifted in phases.

https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/cinemark-approved-for-east-arlington