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The Bat-Signal is lighting up at the Academy Theater.
After 16 years of showing second-run movies, the Academy Theater will go first run on Friday, March 4, with the opening of The Batman, which stars Robert Pattinson as the perpetually tormented Bruce Wayne.
“We believe this shift to screening first-run features will put us on track toward a more predictable and stable business model, while also allowing us to take advantage of new trends in the theatrical release market,” said Heyward Stewart, one of the theater’s owners, in a press release.
With its decision to become a first-run theater, the Academy is going the way of the Bagdad, the Laurelhurst and the Joy Cinema and Pub in Tigard, all of which used to be second-run theaters. Both the Kennedy School and the Avalon continue to show second-run films.
The theater’s press release cited the pandemic and streaming as factors in the decision. As more studios began to release movies simultaneously in theaters and on streaming services (a much-derided practice known as “day-and-date”), the Academy found the audience for its second-run titles shrinking.
While studios appear to be settling on a 45-day period of theatrical exclusivity, the Academy said it decided that was not enough to bolster business.
Showing first-run movies means that the Academy will be raising ticket prices: $9 for adults and $6.50 for seniors and children, with matinee pricing still under discussion.
“Our wonderful staff, beautiful interior, and great food and beverage offerings will all remain the same,” Stewart added in the press release.
Related: Not a Single Independent Portland Movie Theater Went Out of Business During the Pandemic