Two u.s. movie theatre chains ban masks at screenings of Joker

DENVER: The Landmark Theatres chain will ban costumes and masks for moviegoers during screenings of the film “Joker”, it said on Thursday, following concerns expressed by families involved in a 2012 mass shooting during a Batman film in Colorado.

The Los Angeles-based chain, which runs 52 Theatres in 27 markets, said it wanted customers to enjoy the film as a “cinematic achievement.”

“But no masks, painted faces or costumes will be permitted into our Theatres,” it said in a statement to Reuters. The film opens in Theatres on 4 October. Landmark joins the nation’s largest movie chain, Kansas-based AMC Theatres, which has banned masks in theatres since the Colorado massacre that killed a dozen and wounded scores, and re-affirmed that ban.

AMC, which runs more than 650 cinemas, reminded customers this week that while it allowed costumes, it did not allow masks.

“Guests are welcome to come dressed in costume, but we do not permit masks, face paint or any object that conceals the face,” it said in a statement widely reported in the media, including Variety. Landmark did not give a reason for its ban.

But it follows a letter from the families of some victims of the shooting at a 2012 showing of the Batman movie, “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colorado, to Warner Bros., the studio behind the “Joker,” expressing concern. Some of those at the midnight screening in the packed Aurora Theatre had been wearing costumes. The mass shooting at the Century 16 Theatre multiplex owned by Cinemark USA Inc killed 12 and wounded 70.

The gunman, James Holmes, is serving multiple life sentences after being convicted of mass murder, despite pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.

The new film depicts the mental breakdown of the Joker character, the nemesis of Batman in various movie, television and comic book adaptations, that leads to violence.

The families’ letter also urged Warner Bros. to end political contributions to candidates who take money from the National Rifle Association and to fund gun violence intervention programs.