New York City movie theaters will have a big blockbuster available to them immediately when they’re able to open this Friday, as Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” will finally open on the big screen on March 5.
“Tenet” will play at the AMC Lincoln Square, AMC Empire, AMC Kips Bay, Village East by Angelika in 70mm and Showcase Cinemas Jamaica. It will then open on IMAX screens a week later on March 12 at AMC Lincoln Square.
John David Washington and Robert Pattinson star in the time- and genre-bending action and sci-fi film that opened in the few theaters nationwide that were open last September. So far, the movie has brought in $363 million worldwide at the box office, though it’s made only $57.9 million domestically.
Last month, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo cleared NYC movie theaters to open their doors at 25% capacity beginning on March 5, bringing the city in line with the rest of the state. This includes mask-wearing and assigned seating for all attendees and a capacity limit of either 25% or 50 audience members, whichever is lower. Theaters will also have to comply with air filtration standards to reduce the likelihood of the virus circulating in auditoriums.
Major chains were swift to respond to the news, with AMC CEO Adam Aron saying the company would open all 13 of its NYC locations.
Nolan’s “Tenet” was one of the blockbusters that many major theater chains anticipated would lure audiences back to theaters over the summer, though it never came to pass. The film was pushed back a number of times but finally opened in theaters in September, with Nolan remaining a staunch advocate for preserving the theatrical experience. Now, his 11th film will finally get the chance to open in a major market on the biggest of screens, and even in 70mm film print in some locations.
“Tenet” stars Washington as an unnamed spy on an international espionage mission who discovers something that is not time travel but “inversion,” in which time moves in reverse parallel to the events of the real world.
The movie also stars Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Martin Donovan, Fiona Dourif, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Himesh Patel, Clemence Poesy, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Michael Caine and Kenneth Branagh.