If you’ve ever checked your watch 15-20 minutes into what should’ve been the start of your movie, only to be greeted by yet another trailer or car commercial, well… buckle up. Starting July 1, AMC Theatres, the biggest movie chain in the world, is adding even more ads before the film actually begins.
AMC has inked a deal with National CineMedia Inc. to begin running what’s called a “platinum spot”, which will feature an ad shown right before the movie starts, in that final stretch of trailers when the anticipation is peaking. It’s an ad that audiences won’t miss.
This is a move aimed squarely at generating what AMC calls “vital revenue,” and here’s what they had to say about it:
“While AMC was initially reluctant to bring this to our theaters, our competitors have fully participated for more than five years without any direct impact to their attendance.”
They’re not wrong. Regal and Cinemark signed on to this model years ago. AMC was the last holdout. But, after the pandemic ravaged the exhibition industry and with 2024 delivering a mixed bag at the box office, the company is looking for every dollar it can find.
Still, it’s hard not to feel a little defeated. As a movie fan, you want theaters to thrive. You want AMC to survive because the industry needs it to survive. But making the moviegoing experience worse, especially when it’s already fighting the “I’ll just wait to stream it” mindset, feels like a step in the wrong direction.
It’s funny, because AMC’s slogan is “We Make Movies Better” but this will make the movie going experience at their theaters worse.
It’s not like audiences don’t notice. According to AMC’s own website:
“The listed runtime is the duration of the feature film. The feature film does not start at the published showtime. There are approximately 20 minutes of preshow material, including trailers, between the published showtime and the start of the feature film.”
And now, that “preshow” just got longer.
To be fair, AMC is trying some genuinely good stuff. Discount Wednesdays are coming back, which is a solid move to get casual audiences back in the habit. But commercials? That’s just another reason for people to show up late, or skip the theater entirely.
This isn’t about hating on ads. It’s about the core experience. People go to the movies for escape, not to see ads for insurance rates or real estate agents. If the industry really wants to survive, maybe it should focus more on reminding us why we fell in love with movie theaters in the first place, not why we keep showing up 25 minutes late.
Source: Bloomberg
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