Is the Pandemic Leading to the End of Movie Theatres?

Before the dark and gloomy day of March 13, 2020, movie theatres were a place of excitement and interest. However, due to movie theatres all across the country having to close their doors for the well-being of public health, this experience seems to be in decline. Even though there are more and more movie theatres starting to re-open as the country crawls out of the pandemic, there is still a lack of people wanting to go to the movies.  In the age of Netflix and other streaming services, going to the movies seems to be an event that is time-consuming and not as exciting to the general public as it used to be.  Why would this be and is it better or worse to stick to streaming services instead of going to the movies?

When the Pandemic first started in the spring of 2020, I like most people, spent more time than I probably should watching Netflix. I mean, this seemed to be one of the few ways to get my mind off the chaos that was happening around the world. Through this time I was able to still experience the escape that movies provide all while not being able to go to the theatre. This being said, it was still not the same as going to the movies. Being able to go to the movies with friends and share an emotional experience with a group of people is only possible in theatres.

Even though the experience of going to the movies used to be very popular, it seems that streaming is the way most people are going. For one, it is cheaper. I know this is the case from where I’m from as going to the movies costs nearly thirty dollars between tickets, drinks, and popcorn. This is not the case with Netflix as there is a much wider variety of options that viewers can watch anywhere at any time. Even though this was well known before the start of the Pandemic, it has dominated the way people consume entertainment. Although there are lots of benefits to streaming services in terms of accessibility, there is a cost to having this form of entertainment.

In recent times the Film Black Widow gained attention not just for its release, but for the lawsuit that was charged by actress Scarlett Johansson. To put it briefly, Johansson claimed that the Disney Company cost her to lose millions of dollars in revenue for also releasing the film on Disney+ at the same time it was released in theatres. Building off this claim, its leads into how streaming services have gained an edge through the Pandemic while movie theatres have suffered. This action taken by the Disney company is obviously because there are theatres that are struggling to re-open, but also how companies know this seemed to be the preferred choice for viewers. Even though movie theatres are going away no time soon, there is still a noticeable shift in society about the way movies are consumed and what the future in entertainment may look like.