AMC Theaters won’t require customers to wear face masks to avoid ‘political controversy’

NEW YORK – MAY 19: Fans wait in line to buy remaining tickets to popular movies including “The Da Vinci Code” May 19, 2006 at the AMC Theaters on 42nd Street in New York City. Worldwide protests and bans on the film resulted from groups opposed to the depiction of religious organizations and factual misrepresentations in the book and movie. (Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images)

The AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron says the chain would not require patrons to wear face masks —where not required by local governments— when it reopens theaters because it “did not want to be drawn into a political controversy,” Variety reported.

Aron told Variety he would be “wearing a mask and leading by example,” but thought it would be “counterproductive if we forced mask wearing on those people who believe strongly that it is not necessary.” He added that the company believes the “vast majority” of its guests will wear masks. Aron said AMC will not conduct temperature checks on patrons, but will monitor employees for fevers and other coronavirus symptoms.

“IT MIGHT BE COUNTERPRODUCTIVE IF WE FORCED MASK WEARING ON THOSE PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE STRONGLY THAT IT IS NOT NECESSARY.”
AMC, the largest theater chain in the world, plans to reopen in 450 of its 600 US locations on July 15th with limited capacity, after closing all of its theaters around the world in mid-March. The company posted a $2.2 billion net loss in the first quarter and made “virtually no revenue” in the last two weeks of March, according to The Wall Street Journal. AMC also said in its 8-K filing earlier this month that unless it was able to restart operations in July that “substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time.”