Latest in Theaters

U.S, new unemployement claims came in at 6.606 million for the week ende April 4, way above expectations but slighly below the previous week’s tally of a revised 6.867. California had by far the highest number of new claims at 925,450, dwarfing the next two closest states of Michigan and New York which had…

UPDATED with details of executive compensation plan: In an unusual move for a big public company and a bid to buck up the malingering stock, AMC’s 14 top executives including CEO Adam Aron agreed to slash their cash salary and bonuses for three years in exchange for stock that will only vest if the price doubles or…

The spread of the Coronavirus – labeled a global public health emergency by the World Health Organization Thursday and routing the stock market heading into the weekend  – is credit negative for U.S. media and entertainment companies, according to a report out by Moody's this week. Markets swooned Friday with the Dow…

Bad news for theater owners: High ticket prices were the biggest culprit in the 21% year-over-year decline in domestic box office revenues last summer, research and consulting firm PwC reports today based on a survey of 1,044 consumers in October and November. Some 53% of the respondents cited the rising admission…

EXCLUSIVE: Rory Bruer, Sony Pictures President of Worldwide Distribution, disputed a Deadline report that exhibitors are upset over Sony's handling of The Interview. Days after cancelling the December 25 release of the film, Sony today decided to open the film after all. Several exhib sources expressed emotions…

NYC exhibitors escaped Mayor Bloomberg’s attempted soda ban last month. But potential future government regulation of revenue-boosting concessions still has theater owners and operators concerned. And frustrated. “[These] taxations are truly money grabs by the government”, Cinemark Food & Beverage VP Bob Shimmin said…

UPDATE, 3:18 PM: The National Association of Theater Owners says it’s “elated” by the decision. “This issue was never about obesity, nor about soda,” the group says. “This was all about power.” Indeed, the group refers to Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s anti-obesity initiative as “an arbitrary and porous Mayoral fiat.” NATO…

It may be time for studios and theaters to worry a little less about attracting young people to the movies, and a little more about appealing to people with some gray in their hair. Among those who saw at least one movie over the course of the year, overall attendance to new releases fell slightly to 6.8 movies per…

Theater owners and investors won’t find much encouraging news in the latest overview of the exhibition industry by Moody’s Investors Service. “Despite an increase of about 6% in US and Canadian movie theater admissions in 2012, the overall trend is negative,” the debt-rating firm’s Assistant VP Karen Berckmann says…

Looks like movie theater owners are the biggest beneficiaries on Wall Street today from the excitement over the early box office results for The Hunger Games. Carmike was +2.7%,  Marcus Corp was +2.6%, Cinemark was +1.6%,  and Regal was +0.6%. Although exhibition companies have done well over the last few months as…

Last year at ShoWest, Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton appealed to theater owners to introduce healthy foods at concession stands to combat obesity in kid moviegoers. This morning, Lynton lauded AMC for listening. Other chains are helping out by making fattening snacks, popcorn and soda so expensive it’s…

Doughty Hanson, the private equity firm, has bought Vue Entertainment from investor Cavendish Square Partners and the existing management team. Now the UK's 3rd-largest cinema chain wants to take over rival Cineworld or even market leader Odeon/UCI. Such a takeover would be referred to the Competition Commission…