Chinese Movie Theaters To Reopen With Avengers, Avatar, Other Blockbusters

China is starting to reopen their movie theaters after shutting down due to coronavirus, showing blockbusters like The Avengers and Avatar.

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Chinese movie theaters are slowly starting to reopen, and they are doing so with the assistance of big names like The Avengers, Avatar, as well as other blockbusters. The coronavirus, which started in Wuhan, China’s Hubei province, has hit the nation hard with over 3000 deaths, and the country has been in strict lockdown to battle the virus. The lockdown led to theaters shutting down from as far back as January 23, and even had an impact on MGM postponing No Time To Die’s theatrical release from April to November. More recently, other nations like the US and UK have followed suit by closing theaters, leading to a series of marquee releases being delayed. However, as theaters around the world are closing, China is looking to reopen some of its theaters.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, due to China finding some success in battling the coronavirus, the nation is working “to reopen its movie theaters and rebuild its local film industry.” The report also states that there are “an estimated 600 to 700 Chinese movie theaters open for business,” and now to boost business, all four Avengers movies, Avatar, Inception, and Interstellar will be rereleased. Hollywood Reporter explained that a source at one of China’s nationwide cinema operators told them that “whenever the DCPs reach the cinemas,” the films will be available to them. In addition to this, the article notes that the Hollywood studios rereleasing their films in China will still “receive their usual 25 percent share of sales.”

With the effect and danger of the virus being so strong in China, it’s understandable that people will be hesitant to potentially risk their health to watch a film, even if the government is allowing theaters to reopen. So for this reason, rereleasing films that have a proven track of drawing big business in China, and in Avatar’s case, drawing big business on two occasions may prove to be a successful way of bringing people back to the big screen as they can rewatch their favorite heroes. It could also bring in some money for studios that have currently been losing money because of having to delay their new releases. Only time will tell how successful this new strategy will be, and perhaps if it proves to be a success, other countries may try to follow suit when they reopen theaters.