By Shawn Smith
Theaters are trying all kinds of things to bring moviegoers in.
Along with suggestions of special screenings that allow texting and audience sing alongs, there has been a push to allow the use of cannabis in theaters.
Variety writer William Earl argues that there has been a lack of amenities in theaters that are groundbreaking or affordable enough to draw more moviegoers to the seats.
“The current crop of amenities are mostly luxe offerings that make the experience more expensive, like Imax or dine-in theaters, which could be a tough sell if the economy continues to teeter,” Earl wrote.
One solution to draw increase ticket sales? Allow the sale and use of marijuana in their theaters, Earl posited.
“Imagine how much better BARBIE or DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE would be if you could see it with a bud?” he said, “bud” not meaning a best friend.
Apparently, some theaters in states like New York, where cannabis is legal for recreational use, are looking into selling marijuana in theaters. Currently, only licensed dispensaries and adult-use micro businesses can sell the mind-altering substance.
“For theaters to serve recreational marijuana at their establishments, they would need either an events permit or consumption lounge license,” Taylor Randi Lee, press secretary for the New York State Office of Cannabis Management, said. “New York State does not have either yet but plans to in the future.”
But is this the answer? No. According to John Nolte of Breitbart, who, in response to Earl’s article, says the real answer to bringing people to the theaters “is right in front of Variety’s face.”
“The way to bring people back into theaters is to make movies that appeal to those people: BARBIE, TOP GUN: MAVERICK, OPPENHEIMER, DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE, THE SOUND OF FREEDOM, WICKED and INSIDE OUT 2 all prove people still want to go to the movies,” Nolte said.
Related: Why Family-Friendly Movies Triumph at the Box Office
While true that quality entertainment is essential to bringing people into the theaters, numbers have shown that it is also family friendly movies with a strong moral worldview that draws the biggest audiences, as reported in the 2025 Movieguide® Report To The Entertainment Industry by Dr. Ted Baehr and Dr. Tom Snyder.
The document reported that PG movies such as INSIDE OUT 2, which was number one in box office sales in 2024, MOANA 2 and DESPICABLE ME 4 — both top 10 grossing movies for 2024 — averaged $313.24 million, while R-rated movies averaged about $280.82 million.
Furthermore, 84%, of the Top 25 Movies of 2024 had strong Christian, moral and/or biblical content in them, according to the report.
As Nolte wrote, “If you want to make going to the movies even less appealing, stink the joint up with marijuana smoke and turn the candy counter into a pot dispensary. People, especially parents, will love that.”
But if theaters want to draw in the biggest audiences, which are families, best let plans to add weed to their concession stands go up in smoke.
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