Cinema chain AMC warns it may not survive the pandemic

By Tali Arbel - AP Technology Writer


All of AMC’s theaters are shut down through June, which means the company isn’t generating any revenue. AMC said it had enough cash to reopen its theaters this summer, as it plans to do. But if it’s not allowed to reopen, it will need more money, which it may not be able to borrow.


“Due to these factors, substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time,” AMC wrote in a regulatory filing.



Theater chains are also concerned that film studios could push more movies straight to the streaming services that they own. Since the pandemic shut down theaters, entertainment companies have delayed most movies. But Comcast’s NBCUniversal released “Trolls World Tour” on video on demand in April, triggering an angry response from the theater industry, and Disney will release “Artemis Fowl” to its streaming service, Disney Plus, in June, rather than in theaters.

AMC, a publicly traded company controlled by Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda, has 1,000 theaters in the U.S. and Europe. It’s the largest U.S. theater chain.



The company also said it would stay in the black even if local governments only allow it to sell half of its seats to keep customers separated. Cinemark CEO Mark Zoradi said that even “below that level,” the chain’s theaters can be “very, very profitable.”

By Tali Arbel

AP Technology Writer