It has been a rough few years for movie theaters. Streaming and COVID gave a big boost to home entertainment and the high-end home theater business is thriving as more people decided to recreate the movie-going experience at home. This has caused severe damage to the theatrical exhibition industry.
In 2021, the decision by Warner Bros to release their tentpole movies on HBO MAX at the same time as their theatrical releases, along with the short 17-day window from theatrical to streaming release certainly didn’t help.
However, the effects of streaming and COVID weren’t the only thing that put the squeeze on movie theaters. Even before COVID, complaints about higher ticket and concession prices, as well as degraded audience atmosphere with ringing cell phones, people talking, and lack of general theater upkeep, caused a lot of families to think twice about the expense of going to the movies vs staying at home and watching that way.
As a result, a lot of movie theaters have closed in small and large markets. Cineworld (owners of Regal Cinemas) has closed many locations that were once attracting a lot of moviegoers. Archlight Cinema locations have also closed, not to mention a lot of independent and neighborhood theaters.
More and more, movie theaters are just showing big blockbusters, some of which have done very well such as Top Gun Maverick and Avatar 2: Way of Water, while medium and small-budget independent films have been pushed out to the streaming landscape. Major streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Apple TV+ have accelerated making their own movies to further attract viewers away from theaters and to their TV sets.
Netflix has even become a serious player at Oscar time. All they have to do is show an original movie they want to be considered for a week at movie theaters in New York City and Los Angeles before releasing it on their streaming platform to be eligible for Oscar consideration.
So how do we get people back to the movies? How about MoviePass? Yes, It has returned.
Enter MoviePass 2.0
Left to die as a result of bankruptcy in 2020, it appears that the once-popular movie subscription service MoviePass has been resurrected and is ready to get people back into 4,000 participating movie theaters.
Tip: Master’s of Scale Podcast Interview with MoviePass co-founder, Stacy Spikes.
In its new form (referred to as MoviePass 2.0), four subscription plans are being offered to choose from with prices ranging from $10 to $40 per month depending on how many times you go to the movies each month.
With individual movie ticket prices continuing to go up (the average nationwide in the U.S. is now $11) MoviePass sees its strategy as a good bet, especially for theaters that are struggling to fill seats.
MoviePass Plans
Tip: Prices and plan availability may vary by location. 3D movies are not included.
US Plans minus NYC and Southern California
| Plan Type | Basic | Standard | Premium | Pro |
| Price | From $10 per month | From $20 per month | From $30 per month | From $40 per month |
| Movies per Month | 1 to 3 | 3 to 7 | 5 to 11 | 30 (1 per day) |
| Credits Per Month | 34 | 72 | 113 | 640 |
| Number of Participating Theaters | 4000+ | 4,000+ | $4,000+ | 4,000+ |
| Screening Type | 2D | 2D | 2D | 2D |
New York Metro Area and Southern California Plans
| Plan Type | Basic | Standard | Premium | Pro |
| Price | From $20 per month | From $30 per month | From $40 per month | From $60 per month |
| Movies per Month | 1 to 3 | 3 to 7 | 5 to 11 | 30 (1 per day) |
| Credits Per Month | 68 | 140 | 200 | 1200 |
| Number of Participating Theaters | 4000+ | 4,000+ | $4,000+ | 4,000+ |
| Screening Type | 2D | 2D | 2D | 2D |
How To Use MoviePass
Step 1: Download the MoviePass App and Choose and Pay for Your Plan
Step 2: Receive your MoviePass Card (will arrive within 10 to 15 business days)
Step 3: Use your MoviePass Card as your permanent movie ticket at participating theaters.
A Final Note – For Now
Whether MoviePass can succeed in its second incarnation isn’t guaranteed – but if it gets people motivated to go back to the movies, it will have fulfilled one part of its goal (the first goal is to be profitable).
Related Reading
ORT
May 28, 2023 at 3:02 pm
Whether or not MoviePass 2.0 can revive the desire of the populace depends entirely upon what Hollyweird offers us.
To put it bluntly (sorry Emily!): Go woke go broke. Target. Bud Light. Ring a bell, Hollyweird?
While it is kinda true that there’s nothing gnu under the sun Hollyweird seems to be all about dropping something poo under our noses and expecting payment. We are not flies.
And the liberal (talk about fitting) use of the green screen does not always translate to the “green” (i.e., money, kiddies). I could easily go on but I shan’t save this:
I want businesses to prosper. I want people to be employed. I want theaters (and theatres!) to thrive! I am not especially thrilled about $5 for a large (32oz of mostly ice ain’t “large”) soda but if MoviePass helps people (not Hollyweirdos) to forget about the plandemic of Fauxvid and to hope like Hades that this bAdministration of Darth Dementia and his Badawan of a Dumgun, K-mulla Stinks are not getting a sequel.
Every one here, watch “Sullivan’s Travels”! No…Really! Watch it! That pretty much explains what Hollyweird has failed to do for more than a long time ago in a Mall, Far, Far Away…
“ORTiwan Kenobi? That’s a name I’ve not heard in a looooooooong time”…
Ian White
May 28, 2023 at 4:58 pm
ORT,
I agree. I saw “The Little Mermaid” in Florida with my youngest daughter and there was very little enthusiasm in the theater. I actually didn’t think it was terrible but the overall audience response was tepid.
I love movie theaters but it’s getting harder and harder to go with so few good films.
Sir Kurosawa
ORT
June 1, 2023 at 4:12 am
The word is out: Pass on the gnu film, “Indiana Jones and The Dial of Density”.
ORT
Ian White
June 1, 2023 at 10:10 am
ORT,
They lost me after Temple of Doom.
IndIANa White