*Some theaters playing “Straight Outta Compton” (opening this weekend) plan to hire enhanced security for screenings, and Universal is footing the bill.
The decision comes after two recent shooting at theaters, one earlier this month, during a screening of “Mad Max: Fury Road,” when a man brought a pellet gun and a hatchet to a Tennessee theater and attacked movie-goers with pepper spray. Last month, two women were killed during a screening of “Trainwreck by a man who randomly shot them before shooting himself.
The highly anticipated movie, which chronicles the rise of Los Angeles rap group N.W.A., has had hundreds of pre-release screenings without incident. However, there is some worry that the movie‘s gang-related themes, amid current racial tension and police violence, which serves as a significant plot device in the biopic, may stir emotions.
“I don’t think it’s really necessary, but we’re doing it for the public’s peace of mind,” a theater owner in Kansas City and Portland told the Journal.
Studio Movie Grill in Chicago said it will have added security at the film’s screening this weekend.
“The safety and comfort of every guest and team member is Studio Movie Grill’s number one priority, and we take it extremely seriously,” spokeswoman Lynne McQuaker said in an email to the Tribune. “We do have an increased security presence for the weekend at all our locations, as we did after the recent incidents, to ensure the safety and comfort of our guests,” she said.
Universal said that it will “support” theaters in their security concerns but the studio did not disclose which theaters it would be working with.
“We’re very proud of our association with ‘Straight Outta Compton,’ and the film’s been seen nationwide by thousands of people in hundreds of screenings and all of those have occurred without incident,” a Universal spokesman said. “The studio has not solicited enhanced security for theaters who will begin showing the film this weekend, but it has partnered with those exhibitors who’ve requested support for their location.”
“Straight Outta Compton” arrives in theaters today (08-14-15). For showtimes near you, click HERE.
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