There’s almost nothing I hold more sacred than the American Cinematic Movie experience. It’s the singular best entertainment produced in the world, and I worry that I could live to see its death.

I’ve been seeing “midnight premieres” (which now occur as early as noon on Thursday) since I got my drivers license at 16. I average 50-60 movies a year in theatres, and have had AMC A-List or MoviePass continuously since 2012. I’m doing my part to try to keep theatre attendance up.

Will I live to see the death of the American cinematic experience in my lifetime (currently a 30yo male without any imminent health risks)?

Market will extend as long as I’m alive, I guess.

Things that I would count as “the death of the American Cinematic Experience” (any one will qualify here):

1. The majority of major studio releases no longer premiere in theatres, instead coming directly to consumers on streaming. If there is another pandemic, this will be assessed once the virus has receded.

2. There are no longer any national movie chains, without a resurgence of smaller chains. If AMC and Regal both fail, and the vacuum isn’t immediately filled by smaller chains or indie theatres, the national distribution model has failed. If Regal and AMC (or whatever the major chain is) have shrunk to the point that they’re only in select major cities, and there’s no replacement, such that someone in Des Moines would have to travel hours to see a premiere for a wide release (think: Mission Impossible or Marvel), this will likely Resolve YES.

3. Movie theaters no longer are open 7 days a week with continuous showings across the afternoon and evenings. If movie theaters become closer to traditional theatres, with only 1-2 showings a day, such that going to the theares is viewed as an event, and not something one could casually do, this will Resolve YES. This isn’t “theatres shut on Monday’s”, this would need to be a far more radical scale-back of availability than that.

4. Suggest more! This list is not necessarily comprehensive