Several TikTok users have claimed that AMC Theatres and Regal Cinemas experienced various interruptions during screenings of the new anti-child trafficking film Sound of Freedom across different locations in the country.
The interruptions being reported include the air-conditioning being shut off, fire drills and emergency evacuations being conducted, and the lights being left on during the screening.
Despite the reported interruptions, the movie, which is produced by and based on the life of anti-child trafficking activist Tim Ballard, surpassed expectations by hitting $40 million in its opening week. It even outperformed Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny at the box office when it premiered on the Fourth of July.
Sound of Freedom depicts the journey of former Homeland Security special agent Tim Ballard, portrayed by Jim Caviezel, as he establishes Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.), an organization dedicated to combating child trafficking. The film generated $14,242,063 in box office revenue on its first day, surpassing the domestic earnings of the new Indiana Jones movie, which amounted to $11,698,989.
A video shared on Twitter capturing a woman’s experience at an AMC theater has gone viral. In the video, the woman claims that she was unable to watch the movie Sound of Freedom due to air conditioning issues at the theater.
According to the woman, she had pre-ordered her tickets for the film but later discovered that her tickets were refunded without any notification or explanation. When she inquired about the situation, the staff at the AMC theater informed her that the refunds were issued due to air conditioning problems specifically related to the screening of Sound of Freedom.
The woman in the video noted that the a/c was working quite fine in the lobby.
She concluded her video by saying “I smell something stinky.”
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In a TikTok video, Ohio-based musician Jamskillet shared his experience of going to see Sound of Freedom on the Fourth of July with his girlfriend. He mentioned that the theater they visited was one they had been to “many times” before, describing it as “always a pretty good experience.”
“This particular time was really uncomfortable to sit through,” he continued. “There was no a/c running, it was unbearably hot. So I go out and I asked if they can turn the a/c on and they told me that it wasn’t working.”
He further explained that there was a significant difference between the number of available seats shown online and the actual occupancy in the theater. He stated that when he purchased the tickets online, it appeared that the theater was almost sold out, with only a few seats remaining. However, upon arrival, he and his girlfriend found that there were only a total of eight other people in the entire theater.
“I didn’t think anything of this until I got on TikTok a few days later, and come to find out that hundreds of other people are experiencing the same thing,” he added. “So AMC and Regal, the people who own it, are not running a/c and they’re making it hard to get tickets. And that should make you want to go see this movie even more.”
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In a TikTok video, @sunni17q, who resides in Mandeville, Louisiana, shared her experience at a Regal theater in Slidell. She mentioned choosing this particular theater because of its comfortable reclining seats. However, she expressed disappointment when she settled into her seat and found the temperature to be uncomfortable, contrary to her expectations. She even had a sweater on hand, anticipating a cold blast of air-conditioning.
“I was like, ‘It’s really hot in here,'” she recalled.
“Through the movie, I did not move from my seat, even though I was dripping with sweat,” she continued. “I didn’t think about it once until I started seeing all these videos about how there was no a/c in there. There was no a/c… They turned the f****** air off in the Sound of Freedom theater. Yeah, thanks.”
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TikTok user @thelovelyamena shared a video of a fire drill being conducted during the screening of the movie.
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On Monday, a TikTok video posted by user @isntsheadaisy gained viral attention, accumulating 800,000 views and receiving numerous comments. The 48-second video quickly captured the interest of viewers.
“So I’ve been seeing all over TikTok that people are going to watch the movie Sound of Freedom and these weird things are happening like random emergency evacuations, the air conditioning not working and having to leave the theater,” the voice on the video said.
“And I thought ‘no that’s probably just something that’s happening in other theaters in other places. So I took me and my daughters to go watch Sound of Freedom today,” she said.
“About an hour and twenty minutes into the movie we get a random emergency evacuation. None of the staff knows what’s going on. The mall wasn’t being evacuated, just the theater,” she said.
The TikTok user expressed her surprise when she received a refund for her ticket without any explanation, leading her to jokingly refer to herself as a “conspiracy theorist.”
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Here’s yet another incident of the a/c being turned off at an AMC theater in an undisclosed location but this time the lights were also kept on.
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