John Fithian, the president of the National Association Of Theatre Owners, is confident moviegoers will return to cinemas once the coronavirus quarantine subsides.
Fithian made this prediction during a webinar for exhibitors, theatre vendors, concessionaires, and journalists on Friday, which was designed to offer reassurances and advice for the industry during this time of trouble.
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“We strongly believe there will be a rush to cinemas to see all kinds of movies because people will just want to connect with their family and friends once it’s safe to do so,” remarked Fithian, according to Indiewire.
Fithian and his Vice President Patrick Corcoran even went as far as to estimate that theaters will re-open their doors either in late May or early June.
But that seems incredibly optimistic since some governors in the United States believe that the pandemic won’t peak in their states until the middle of the summer, and others aren’t willing to put a timeline on it.
LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 02: Nato President & CEO John Fithian speaks onstage at CinemaCon 2019 The State of the Industry and STXfilms Presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace during CinemaCon, the official convention of the National Association of Theatre Owners, on April 2, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for CinemaCon)
Whenever cinemas do open back up, Fithian believes that major precautions will be needed to keep audiences safe.
“We anticipate when we first open cinemas back up anywhere in the world, we’ll have social distancing. We’ll return to the very intense cleaning procedures and anything else the health officials recommend.”
Fifthian also said that he expects most major blockbuster to eventually be released in cinemas, rather than being made available online instead.
Read More: Study finds that cinemas could suffer ‘major drop’ in attendance even after pandemic subsides
In fact, he attacked Universal’s plans to debut Trolls: World Tour online, calling it a “bad decision,” before adding that his conversations with the major studios are “not suggesting significant changes in the business model.” Instead, they’re about how they can “survive as an industry.”
But that was before Disney announced that Artemis Fowl will debut on Disney+ in May, though, which suggests that huge changes to the movie industry could still follow the crisis.
