Go To The Movies Again: AMC Theater To Reopen In Danbury

DANBURY, CT — The nation's largest movie chain will reopen some sites on Aug. 20, including a location here in the city.

AMC Entertainment will reopen its Danbury theater and its Plainville movie house, along with more than 100 more locations, with retro ticket prices of 15 cents per movie as part of the chain's centennial celebration. The promotion is called "Movies in 2020 at 1920 Prices." The

AMC shuttered all its sites in March following the outbreak of the coronavirus, and laid off or furloughed 600 corporate employees. According to a recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, the company has been operating for months without revenue. That, along with massive debt and concerns that COVID fears would keep moviegoers away even after their sites reopened, raised "substantial doubt" about the company's "ability to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time."

With the hope of alleviating some of those fears, the chain launched a website that detailed the precautions its reopened sites would be taking to minimize the spread of the virus. These include mandatory masking, social distancing, cashless transactions, maximium auditorium capacity at 30 percent or less, and simplified menu selections to minimize lines at the food counter. AMC movie houses also will also have upgraded air filtration, and enhanced cleaning and disinfection protocols.

Don't expect to watch Hollywood's latest multi-million dollar blockbuster for your 15 cents, however. The reopening day promotion will screen such back-catalog films as "Back to the Future,""Ghostbusters," "Black Panther," and "Grease." These archive flicks will continue to play after the 20th for $5.

That doesn't mean summer 2020 is going to be completely blockbuster-free, or even Marvel-less. The Russell Crowe-starring modern-horror headliner "Unhinged" drops Aug. 21 at AMC's Danbury location, and Disney's latest but uncharacteristically dark Marvel super hero flick "The New Mutants" opens a week later. Another 300 more AMC locations will start unspooling again in the last weeks of August.

"We are thrilled to once again open our doors to American moviegoers who are looking for an opportunity to get out of their houses and apartments and escape into the magic of the movies," said Adam Aron, president of AMC Theatres.

The tickets will set you back more than 15 cents, but Regal Cinemas, the nation's second largest chain, plans to reopen some U.S. locations on Aug. 21.

Other AMC theaters in Connecticut not participating in the chain's centennial promotion are in Bloomfield, Lisbon and Southington.