AMC Theaters Want To Add 30 Minutes Of Commercials Before The Movie

Just when you thought waiting through 20 minutes of car commercials and oddly intense fragrance ads was bad enough, AMC Theatres has looked deep into our popcorn-greased souls and said: “What if we made it 30?”

Yes, AMC is reportedly planning to crank up the pre-movie advertisement clock this summer, all in the name of “not raising ticket prices.” And if you’re sitting in an El Paso theater wondering why you're watching your third insurance ad before Deadpool & Wolverine starts, congrats, you’re now part of the "platinum spot" era.

AMC’s New Platinum Spot Ads Could Delay Movie Start Times

The change is part of a new partnership between AMC and National CineMedia (NCM), a company that basically exists to shove even more commercials into the moviegoing experience. Starting in July, AMC will begin running ads right before the film actually begins—not before the trailers, but after them.

This marks a sharp U-turn from AMC’s own bold 2019 statement when they publicly rejected this exact idea and said, “U.S. moviegoers would react quite negatively.” But now that Regal and Cinemark have been doing it for years, AMC apparently figured, “Why not us too?” Like a sibling who swore they’d never try a fad and is now wearing Crocs.

To be fair, AMC says it’s trying to make money without raising ticket prices. Which, sure, we get. But let’s not pretend we’re not going to notice when our 7:30 p.m. screening doesn’t actually start until 8.

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Alamo Drafthouse Sets the Standard for Pre-Movie Content

Now, AMC, if you’re listening: there is a way to do this that doesn’t make people want to walk out before the movie even starts. It’s called relevant content. Alamo Drafthouse does this masterfully, curating weirdly perfect pre-show segments tied to the movie you're about to see. Watching vintage catfight reels before Godzilla x Kong? Hilarious. B-movie trailers before Dune? Chef's kiss.

If you’re going to make us sit through another 10 or 15 minutes of screen time, at least make it fun. Let us watch bloopers from the actors in the movie we’re about to see. Give us behind-the-scenes clips or mini-docs. Or go fully Texas and toss in some local ads starring ranchers, mascots, or a dramatic brisket-slicing montage. Anything but another full-blown Verizon campaign.

El Paso Moviegoers Aren’t Happy With Longer AMC Ads

We already brave the desert heat, the occasional popcorn machine breakdown, and people trying to sneak in burritos from Whataburger. We don’t need a full extra half-hour of commercials on top of it.

So AMC, we’re asking nicely: either do what Alamo does, or let us pay an extra dollar and skip this “platinum” nonsense. If you’re going to make us wait this long to get to the feature presentation, at least let us show up in pajamas and bring a sleeping bag.