As part of the newly launched “National Cinema Day” to entice moviegoers during a quiet time at the box office, most theaters in America are offering movie tickets for just $3 for one day.
The Cinema Foundation, the non-profit arm of the National Association of Theater Owners, announced Sunday that September 3rd will be National Discount Day in over 3,000 theaters and over 30,000 screens. Big chains like AMC and Regal Cinemas are on board, as are all major movie studios. Tickets are $3 or less for all showings in all formats at participating theaters.
Labor Day weekend is traditionally one of the slowest weekends in theaters. This year, the lull in August was particularly acute for exhibitors. Cineworld, which owns Regal Cinemas, cited a lack of supply of major new releases in its recent plans to fill Chapter 11’s bankruptcy.
But if successful, National Cinema Day could flood theaters with moviegoers and encourage them to return in the fall. Prior to each screening, ticket purchasers will receive sizzle reels of upcoming films from A24, Amazon Studios, Disney, Focus Features, Lionsgate, Neon, Paramount, Sony Pictures Classics, Sony, United Artists Releasing, Universal, and Warner Bros. is displayed.
“After this summer’s record-breaking return to cinema, we wanted to do something to celebrate moviegoing,” said Jackie Brenneman, president of the Cinema Foundation, in a statement. We do that by giving a ‘thank you’ to the moviegoers who made it happen, and a special treat for those who haven’t returned yet.”
After more than two years of the pandemic, movie theaters rebounded significantly in the summer, with business returning to roughly pre-pandemic levels. Movies like Multiverse of Madness and Jurassic World Dominion have pushed the domestic summer box office to $3.3 billion as of August 21. According to data company Comscore. That’s about 20% below his 2019 total, while exhibitor wide his releases this year are about 30% less.
National Cinema Day organizers described the event as an attempt to become an annual event. While several other countries are experimenting with similar cheap movie tickets, such a large-scale effort is the first of its kind in the United States.
Jake Coyle