Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer broke the big news on Monday when it announced results from their Stage 3 testing of the company’s coronavirus vaccine, achieving a 90% success rate in protecting trial participants against infection from the virus. Based on this success and timeline, health authorities suggest cautiously that normal life may begin to return as early as March or April 2021. The news was celebrated far and wide, especially by the beleaguered theatre owners of America.
After the Monday announcement, share prices surged for the three major exhibitor chains – AMC, Regal, and Cinemark. Looking into 2021, Yahoo Finance published results from a poll it commissioned the Harris Organization to conduct asking the public to share their thoughts about returning to theatres. Not surprisingly, the single biggest factor in keeping movie-goers away from theatres is their concern about the potential for exposure to the coronavirus. However, another significant factor is their lack of interest in the films theatres have been showing.
See also: IMAX CEO: COVID-19 Vaccine a “Game Changer” for Movie Theater Revival (Hollywood Reporter)