Posters for upcoming movies are displayed in an empty corridor at the currently closed AMC Burbank Town Center 8 movie theaters complex on April 29, 2020, in Burbank, Calif. AMC Entertainment lost billions during the pandemic.
Posters for upcoming movies are displayed in an empty corridor at the currently closed AMC Burbank Town Center 8 movie theaters complex on April 29, 2020, in Burbank, Calif. Chris Pizzello, Invision via Associated Press
Herb Scribner

By Herb Scribner

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AMC will reopen its movie theaters beginning next week, and prices will be so low you’d think it’s 1920 all over again.

What’s happening:

  • AMC — the world’s largest movie theater chain — will reopen more than 100 movie theaters on Thursday, Aug. 20.
  • AMC will offer “movies in 2020 at 1920 prices.”
  • Tickets will cost $0.15. That’s right. Fifteen cents.
  • The $0.15 promotion only applies on Aug. 20.
  • AMC plans to reopen two-thirds of its entire fleet of movie theaters (which is about 600 screens in the U.S.) before “Tenet” is released on Sept. 3.
  • U.S. theaters can only reopen after they are “authorized to do so by state and local officials,” according to the company. 

“We are thrilled to once again open our doors to American moviegoers who are looking for an opportunity to get out of their houses and apartments and escape into the magic of the movies. As our guests return on our first day of resumed operations on Aug. 20, we invite them to join us in celebrating a return to the movies, and in celebrating 100 years of AMC making smiles happen with movies at 1920 prices of only 15 cents each.” — Adam Aron, CEO and president of AMC Theatres

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What movies can you see?

  • “Black Panther”
  • “Back to the Future”
  • “Ghostbusters”
  • “Grease”
  • “Star Wars: Episode V: The Empire Strikes back”
  • “Unhinged” (available Aug. 21)
  • “Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula” (available Aug. 21)
  • “Cut Throat City” (available Aug. 21)
  • “Words of Bathroom Walls” (available Aug. 21)
  • “Inception” (available Aug. 21)

Is it safe?

  • There will be some risk involved, especially if you’re attending an indoor space. But AMC has implemented new safety measures to keep theaters clean, including limited and restricted seating, seat blocking to allow for social distancing, enhanced cleaning measures and thorough disinfecting, according to the company.
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The bigger picture:

  • AMC closed its doors back in March when the coronavirus pandemic started to hit the United States. The theater has tried to reopen several times over the last few months but has walked back its reopening plans at nearly every turn.
  • Other movie theaters have reopened amid the pandemic. For example, Cinemark reopened its doors, allowing people to watch older classic films like “Jurassic Park,” “Back to the Future” and “The Empire Strikes Back.” Locally in Utah, the Megaplex Theatres reopened its doors to allow screenings of older films, too.
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