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AMC Theaters announced on Friday that the course would be reversed and all guests would have to wear masks when the U.S. locations reopened in July. The move comes a day after AMC CEO Adam Aron said in an interview with Variety that the company would not introduce mandatory face mask rules in its cinemas because it did not want to be “involved in a political controversy.”
AMC, the largest cinema chain in the world, on Thursday Plans to reopen 450 cinemas fully operational by July 15th and in time for the release of the blockbuster titles Mulan and Tenet, which are slated for release on July 24th and 31st, respectively. In addition to reducing capacity and enforcing social distancing to combat the spread of Corona virusAMC said guests were asked to wear masks, but this was not mandatory in areas not required by local law.
“This announcement sparked a violent and immediate outcry from our customers, and the response indicates that we haven’t gone far enough in using masks,” Aron said in a Friday press release. “Accordingly, with the full support of our scientific advisors, we are reversing the course and changing our guidelines for guest masks.”
People will have to wear masks at all AMC locations in the US if the theaters reopen after COVID-19 closes. Those who don’t wear a mask are not allowed, the company said. AMC said it will take scientific knowledge into account and examine local health conditions if it makes any necessary changes to its face mask policy in the future.
Cinemark and Regal this week too announced its plans to reopen cinemas in the USA. Cinemark, which expects all locations to be open by July 17, said that guests at all locations will be required to wear a face mask and that the company may “comply with local guidelines for residents in must wear face masks to the public. ” . “
Regal, who plans to start opening the theaters on July 10, says on its website that all employees and guests must wear face masks.