Are Treasure Valley Movie Theaters About to Become Extinct?

Could this be an actual reality moving into Fall 2020? This year is a punchline in so many memes and posts online. Could your weekend attendance at Regal Edwards be coming to an end?

I remember the lines during the era of Twilight and Hunger Games premieres. Fans would lineup up hours earlier just to get the best seat in the movie theater. There was an exciting atmosphere that came along with these premieres. Now what?

It wasn't till most recently that I even realized the movies were actually opened yet. I was talking with Moug from the morning show and he's been to a few. I think if you grew up with going it's just something in your DNA of things you do. Or, is it?

COVID-19 will change everything so it's best to just take a step back and prepare yourself. Some of these changes will be good and others not so great. Movie theaters could be a thing of the past and I have one example to prove this, Mulan.

Disney was planning on releasing Mulan and my wife was so excited to take our kids. She introduced them to all the best Disney movies and Mulan is a favorite. The pandemic shuts this down. That's what I thought anyway. I'm looking at a $304 million dollars that the film has grossed and none of that is from the theater. Disney charged users $29 dollars to watch it on the popular streaming service and the country paid. People continue to pay and also pay for the Disney+ service. Disney Plus members who purchase Mulan get free views as long as they are a member. Members not purchasing the film can watch it when it's available to the public 3 months after the release and that's on December 4, 2020.

I guarantee these major motion pictures are paying close attention to this. You can argue that it's so expensive but is it? If we bought this movie to rent it would cost us $29 dollars. That is a price for four people and anyone we want to bring over. We can also watch it whenever we want in the privacy of our own homes. This in a time where people were already nervous about going to movie theaters in possible fear of a shooting. Staying at home, paying cheaper rates, and eating whatever you want has become very attractive to all of us. We're the ones to blame and it doesn't look like that's going to change.

I don't think theaters will completely disappear today or even in the next few years. I do believe they'll need to offer more experiences to bring us out and pay all that money. It's like going to Best Buy or Sephora in the mall. You can't just check out anymore without walking through a maze of extra things to spend your money on.

Time is changing and we might as well just get comfortable with it.