Just after midnight on July 20, during a screening of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, Colo.’s Century 16 Theater, James Holmes, 24, set off tear gas before shooting multiple firearms at the crowded theater.
With 12 dead and 58 injured, the tragedy is considered by many to be one of the worst contemporary shootings in the U.S. and has since put a spotlight on gun control laws and placed a new emphasis on several other topics.
Among them are questions of theater safety and the role violent films might have on spurring senseless attacks like the Aurora shooting. People have blamed every possible depiction of violence, from those found in comic books to the fighting scenes of The Dark Knight Rises film itself.
But while at least two victims’ families have taken to high-powered lawyers to sue the Colorado theater where the shooting took place, Andrew Powers, chief of police for the Ohio University Police Department, said he believes increasing theater security in Athens theaters is not a viable solution.
“Since these type of attacks can occur anywhere at any time, we need to think more broadly in terms of strategies,” he said. “Not only should we dedicate resources to security measures, we also need to think about prevention. Increasing security to make people feel safer, if we’re not actually making them safer, makes no sense.”
Regardless, the shooting has shaken some movie patrons. As a result of the shootings, the film cancelled its Paris, Mexico and Japan premieres, ended its marketing campaign in Finland and decided to postpone reports of its box office figures until July 23, the Monday after its weekend opening.
The massacre also affected the film’s debut, as it was originally slated to premiere at a $190 million dollar opening, but instead bowed out at $161 million, according to Entertainment Weekly. Additionally, the film Gangster Squad, which featured a theater-shooting climax and was set to premiere this fall, has been delayed until next year for reshoots. Both films are housed under Warner Bros. Studios.
Now, nearly a month after the shooting, some may still call into question whether the July tragedy has an effect on the movie-going experience, particularly in Athens.
In the U.S. alone, The Dark Knight Rises has moved forward to bring in $394 million, with a budget of $250 million. More recently-debuted films, such as The Bourne Legacy and The Campaign, both opened as expected in the $38 million and $26 million areas, respectively, according to Box Office Mojo.
“I would definitely say that it affected the opening weekend of the film, but I don’t think people will allow this type of thing from letting them go to the theater in the future,” said Rick Frame, general manager of The Athena Grand.
While the theater’s staff will be ensuring that patrons don’t bring unchecked bags, they will not be dramatically altering the way they provide security for their theaters.
Pot O’ Gold Productions, the advertisement manager and provider for the theater, also doesn’t believe that the shootings will largely affect their theater.
“People will still go to the movies,” said Clarke Mazza, president and C.E.O. of Pot O’ Gold Productions. “More people, particularly children, are killed each year in choking incidents than mass shootings. Why are they making such a big deal about this shooting, or for that matter, any shooting, when there are many, many more ways that a person can die from other than a shooting?’”
While the Aurora incidentt is a hot subject now, Mazza believes that it will soon become old news.
“In general, people are a forgetful lot,” Mazza said. “Heck, most people can’t tell you the name of the person who developed the vaccine that eliminated Polio. That saved millions of lives, but who really cares now?”
Still, as an advertiser, Mazza and his company will be making sure that they remain sensitive to the subject.
“Sure, we will avoid advertisements that include violence,” he said. “We always have.”
wa054010@ohiou.edu
