Movie theater owners spending $2 billion to add pickleball courts
Sep 20, 2024, 5:26 PM | Updated: 5:41 pm
You heard that right! Theater owners are planning on spending $2.2 Billion to modernize and upgrade our movie watching experience.
Eight of the top movie theater chains plan to invest and upgrade more than 21,000 screens over the next three years.
The investment will cover everything from improved sound and projection to upgrading dining experiences — plus, in some locations, investing in attractions like pickleball and ziplines. You read that right, ziplines and pickleball courts.
The upgrade plans come as the after-effects of the pandemic and Hollywood strikes with summer box office totals running about 13% below last year.
In addition, moviegoers often complain on social media that theaters are dirty or have substandard seats or projection.
To bring life back to the theaters, they feel they need to make them unique.
“Today’s consumers rightly demand the best possible experience when they visit our theaters. Operating a theater today is a capital-intensive operation,” said NATO Executive Board Chair and CEO of B&B Theatres, Bob Bagby. “This investment of resources is the next step in our industry’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that going to the theater remains a unique and special experience for generations to come.” B&B Theatres has opened locations that include pickleball (pictured above) and bowling, among other activities.
What do you think? Do you like your movie theater separate from the other activities or do you want them all in one place?
I was hoping they would spend the money on chairs that make you feel like you are in the movie. Those would get me in the theater more than a zipline.
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