Quebec to compensate movie theatres for lost revenue after ‘Popcorngate’
Province says theatres can reopen next week but cannot sell food
MONTREAL — The Quebec government will compensate movie theatre owners for lost concession stand revenue, Premier François Legault said Thursday, following a disagreement that he dubbed “Popcorngate.”
The province has said movie theatres can reopen Feb. 26 but cannot sell food, in order to ensure people wear masks throughout the duration of films to limit spread of COVID-19.
Legault said the owner of the Guzzo Cinemas chain had threatened to stay closed because of the difficulty turning a profit without selling snacks.
“Mr Guzzo says he doesn’t want to open movie theatres — and he has many in Quebec — if we don’t permit him to sell popcorn,” Legault told reporters in Quebec City.
The premier said he’ll compensate owners for concession stand losses.
Cinema owner Vincenzo Guzzo’s criticism of the reopening plan has inspired the term Popcorngate, and the name has since been picked up by commentators and politicians.
Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon posted a video on Twitter Wednesday — edited to include bouncing kernels and musical sound effects — of himself trying to keep a straight face while answering a reporter’s question about the popcorn conflict.
“The scientific data as to why popcorn is a threat, we’ll never know because we have a (Health Department) that never publishes data, never publishes in a transparent manner why they are doing things,” StPierre Plamondon said.