Can movie theaters survive coronavirus? World’s largest chain has ‘substantial doubts’

Once the coronavirus pandemic passes, will you still be able to catch Hollywood’s latest on the big screen? Only if movie theaters survive.

AMC Theatres, the world’s largest cinema chain, said on June 3 it has “substantial doubts” whether it can remain in business for the long term, CNN reported.

But almost a week later, AMC has decided to give it go, and plans to reopen most of its theaters by the end of July ahead of the July 17 release of “Tenet” and the July 24 release of “Mulan,” The Kansas City Star reported Tuesday.

The company, controlled by Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, says it lost up to $2.4 billion in the first months of 2020, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The company closed most of its more than 1,000 theaters in March as the global coronavirus pandemic hit the United States, Variety reported.

“We are generating effectively no revenue,” AMC Theatres said in a regulatory filing on June 3, CNN reported.

The company also furloughed 26,000 workers and 600 corporate employees, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

“We believe we have the cash resources to reopen our theatres and resume our operations this summer or later,” the company says, Variety reported.

But even when movie theaters reopen, AMC Theatres faces the prospect of reduced output from Hollywood studios, which delayed several ready-to-release summer blockbusters and halted work on new films, CNN reported.

A second wave of coronavirus cases also could force the chain to shut down for a second time, further straining its finances, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Those concerns raise “substantial doubts” about the company’s long-term viability, a signal it could be forced to file for bankruptcy, CNN reported.

More than 6.4 million cases of the COVID-19 virus have been confirmed worldwide with more than 380,000 deaths as of June 3, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 1.8 million confirmed cases with more than 106,000 deaths.

The World Health Organization has declared coronavirus a global pandemic. In the United States, President Donald Trump has declared a national emergency.

This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 8:24 AM with the headline "Can movie theaters survive coronavirus? World’s largest chain has ‘substantial doubts’."