Local movie theaters announce reopening plans

Las Vegas movie theaters, shuttered since mid-March by the coronavirus pandemic, are showing signs of making a comeback.

Regal and Cinemark, the two largest theatrical operators in the valley, announced their reopening plans over the past week.

Regal theaters will be open starting July 10, albeit in a modified fashion.

Concession menus will be limited, refills will no longer be an option, and restaurants and dine-in services, such as the ones available at Downtown Summerlin and Palace Station, will be suspended.

Among the other changes:

■ Moviegoers will be asked to enter their auditorium as soon as possible after arriving and leave as soon as their movie is over.

■ Reservation systems will maintain two empty seats between groups, or one seat in theaters with recliners.

■ Every auditorium and seat will be sanitized after each movie using

“electrostatic fogger” equipment.

■ Arcade games, vending machines and water fountains won’t be available.

Lobby greeters will help guests with the new procedures, the company said.

In addition to Downtown Summerlin and Palace Station, Regal operates the cinemas at Aliante, Boulder Station, Colonnade, Fiesta Henderson, Green Valley Ranch Resort, Red Rock Resort, Sunset Station, Texas Station and Village Square.

Cinemark, which operates here under the Century brand, will welcome guests July 3 to the theaters at The Orleans, Sam’s Town, Santa Fe Station, South Point and Suncoast. The Cinedome in Henderson is scheduled to reopen July 17. Among the changes announced:

■ To reduce contact, cash payments won’t be accepted at concession stands, and guests will no longer have to hand paper tickets to ushers.

■ Theater capacities will be reduced, and showtimes will be staggered.

■ Hand sanitizer stations and seat wipe dispensers will be added.

In addition to some of the movies that were available when theaters closed in March, Century theaters will reopen with older movies, dubbed “Comeback Classics.” Tickets for these movies — including “Back to the Future,” “Jaws,” “Ghostbusters,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Space Jam” — will be available for $5.

Elsewhere, AMC, which operates the theaters at Town Square and Rainbow Promenade, said Thursday that it would open its locations in waves, starting July 15.

New movies will begin rolling out July 10, beginning with the Russell Crowe road rage thriller “Unhinged.”

The first major Hollywood releases are scheduled to be Disney’s live-action remake of “Mulan” on July 24, followed by Christopher Nolan’s buzzy suspense tale “Tenet” on July 31.