Cinemark, AMC, Brenden movie theaters close amid coronavirus scare

Cinemark joined AMC and Brenden Theatres as the latest cinema chains to close in Las Vegas in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Regal Cinemas, the largest operator of movie theaters in the Las Vegas Valley, was the first to shutter its theaters Monday.

AMC, the nation’s largest theater chain and which operates theaters at Town Square and Rainbow Promenade, is closed for at least six weeks.

Brenden Theatres, owned by Las Vegan Johnny Brenden, announced it will close its locations, including its multiplex at the Palms, by the end of business Tuesday.

Cinemark, the nation’s third-largest chain, eventually followed suit Tuesday afternoon, saying it is temporarily closing all 345 of its U.S. locations. Locally, the company operates theaters at The Orleans, Sam’s Town, Santa Fe Station, South Point and Suncoast as well as the Cinedome in Henderson under the Century banner.

“The decision to close our U.S. theaters was incredibly tough, but we know it is the right thing to do as global coronavirus concerns continue to escalate,” said Mark Zoradi, Cinemark CEO.

“We are ever so disappointed for our moviegoing guests and for our employee teams that the new CDC guidelines that Americans should not gather in groups larger than 10 people make it impossible to open our theaters,” Adam Aron, CEO of AMC, said in a statement.

A Brenden Theatres statement said the company was looking forward to reopening “as soon as possible.”

Galaxy Theatres, which has multiplexes at the Boulevard Mall and the Cannery and in Green Valley, is remaining open for the time being.

On its website, Galaxy said it is suspending reserved seating to allow for greater distances between moviegoers, limiting the number of seats sold and having ushers monitor social distancing in the auditorium. Seats and tray tables will be sanitized between showings, which are being spaced out to allow for more cleaning, the company said.

Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4567. Follow @life_onthecouch on Twitter.