AMC Is Expanding Its Open Film Captioning Support Across the U.S.

The movie show chain AMC is increasing its film captioning support throughout the U.S., bringing the function to pick showtimes at 240 theaters in additional than 100 markets across the nation.

Open captions—that are completely different from closed captions solely in that they’re at all times current on the display and may’t be turned off by the viewer—present vital help for deaf and hard-of-hearing moviegoers who aren’t usually accommodated in most industrial theater experiences. And some folks just prefer to have captions on whether or not they’re wanted or not.

“By adding open captions to the variety of presentation formats we offer, AMC locations become a more welcoming place for millions of Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as many for whom English is not their native language,” Elizabeth Frank, government vice chairman of worldwide programming and chief content material officer of AMC, stated in a press release. “Initial consumer response has been very positive, and we anticipate strong demand with growing awareness of open caption showtimes at AMC.”

The announcement of expanded assist for open captioning comes simply as Deaf actress Lauren Ridloff, a “The Walking Dead” alum who performs Makkari within the imminent Marvel launch “Eternals,” has change into more and more vocal in regards to the lack of accessibility in film theaters throughout the U.S.

“We’re an afterthought in movie theaters, and that needs to change,” she advised the New York Times in a September interview. “You have to use a special closed-captioning device to watch subtitling in a theater, and it’s a headache.”

In a tweet heralding the expanded entry, AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron immediately referenced “Eternals,” seemingly a nod to Ridloff’s latest advocacy.

“I am proud to announce that @AMCTheatres permanently will offer some Open Caption showtimes each week,” Aron wrote. “A real advance for those with hearing difficulties or where English is a second language. And right in time for Eternals from @Disney.”

As of this week, anybody in search of extra accessible screenings can use AMCTheatres.com and the AMC cell app to search out open caption showtimes at collaborating theaters. According to AMC, these showtimes at present signify “…a mix of weekend and weekdays, evenings and matinees, and are expected to evolve with movie-going demand and guest feedback.”