Local movie theaters prepare for busy weekend as ‘Barbie,’ ‘Oppenheimer’ get wide release
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Local movie theaters in Mid-Missouri say they're expecting a busy weekend, as two different movies will hit the screens.
"Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" are releasing this weekend, and area movie theaters like Ragtag Cinema and Regal's Hollywood Theater told ABC 17 News they're expecting sold-out showings and packed crowds the entire weekend.
"Presales have been really strong... the strongest actually that we've seen post-COVID," B&B Theatres spokesman Paul Farnsworth said.
The Forum 8 Theater in Columbia and B&B Theatre in Fulton also say this could be the busiest weekend they've seen since "Avengers: Endgame" was released in 2019.
"We've already broken 1200 people at noon today which is, that's above top gun mavericks putting it up above like 'Avengers: Endgame weekend sales," Forum 8 General Manager Calon Burns.
Theaters also noted that presales for the movies were also through the roof.
This comes after the COVID-19 pandemic placed restrictions that didn't allow for theaters to operate at full capacity, leading to theaters across the nation nearly reaching bankruptcy, or closing for periods of time. Viewing habits during the pandemic appeared to change for consumers as more companies focused on streaming releases.
Regal Cinemas announced movie theater closures earlier this year after its parent company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Most of those closings occurred in New York and California.
There's been a handful of hits since theaters reopened, including multiple Marvel movies, "Avatar: The Way of Water," "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," and "Top Gun: Maverick" but theaters expect this weekend in particular to be their busiest in years.
"Barbie" is a movie based on the decades-popular Mattel toy starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. "Oppenheimer" is a movie based on J. Robert Oppenheimer, a physicist who was pivotal in creating the first atomic bomb and led the Manhattan Project. The latter film is directed by Christopher Nolan and stars Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr., Emily Blunt and Florence Pugh.
Despite staffing shortages still being apparent after the pandemic, theaters said they don't anticipate having issues this weekend ensuring their theaters are covered.
"We're doing pretty good right now," Ragtag Cinema projectionist Lynnya Simmons said. "We've had a lot more projectionists come on."
