Experiencing movies in theaters is one of the most pristine feelings ever, something that can never be recreated by alternatives, irrespective of technological advancements. However, with the advent and popularity of Ott and streaming service-based entertainment in the last decade, a significant portion of the population turned their back on theaters. This marked a drastic decline in the number of moviegoers, and its impact was noticeable with the shutting down of several movie theaters. In 2011, the subscription-based movie-viewing service, Moviepass, was launched, which had the potential to revolutionize the theater business in a massive way, and to some extent, it managed to do so for a certain period of time. But a series of instances of mismanagement led to the service’s downfall, which is duly chronicled in HBO’s documentary Moviepass, Moviecrash, directed by Muta’Ali.
In a taut, detailed, and methodical way, the documentary delineates the events that...
In a taut, detailed, and methodical way, the documentary delineates the events that...
- 6/1/2024
- by Siddhartha Das
- Film Fugitives
If you were there, you remember. 2018 was the summer of MoviePass, a glorious period in cinema history where millions said “why not” and took a chance to see nearly any movie thanks to the revolutionary subscription platform.
Switching to an unsustainable $10 a month, MoviePass went from being a niche program for movie fans to the hottest subscription program around. Offering users the chance to see a movie a day at nearly any theater in the country, it was, of course, too good to be true––especially when one ticket in New York City could be as much as $17.
The rise and fall of MoviePass is chronicled in the new HBO documentary MoviePass, MovieCrash, which recently premiered at SXSW, and in co-founder Stacy Spikes’ book Black Founder. Spikes was forced out of the company he co-founded with Hamet Watt by the infamous duo of Mitch Lowe and Ted Farnsworth after questionable...
Switching to an unsustainable $10 a month, MoviePass went from being a niche program for movie fans to the hottest subscription program around. Offering users the chance to see a movie a day at nearly any theater in the country, it was, of course, too good to be true––especially when one ticket in New York City could be as much as $17.
The rise and fall of MoviePass is chronicled in the new HBO documentary MoviePass, MovieCrash, which recently premiered at SXSW, and in co-founder Stacy Spikes’ book Black Founder. Spikes was forced out of the company he co-founded with Hamet Watt by the infamous duo of Mitch Lowe and Ted Farnsworth after questionable...
- 3/25/2024
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
MoviePass, a rebooted version of the app that once burned through cash promising theatergoers all-you-can-watch features for a single fee, says it’s now going to expand nationwide again during the busy box office Memorial Day frame.
In its latest incarnation, the firm, run by Stacy Spikes, has subscription plans that range from $10 a month (for one to three movies) as well as $40 a month (for 30 movies a month). And the company claims that moviegoers can use the app at 4,000 locations. “By opening up MoviePass to film lovers nationwide, we are expanding our support of the movie theater industry by helping drive traffic to all theaters during the critical summer season,” stated Spikes.
In January, the company said it raised funding from a number of financiers led by venture firm Animoca Brands, expanded to nine U.S. markets and inked partnerships with chains including B&b Theatres, Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas and Landmark Theatres.
In its latest incarnation, the firm, run by Stacy Spikes, has subscription plans that range from $10 a month (for one to three movies) as well as $40 a month (for 30 movies a month). And the company claims that moviegoers can use the app at 4,000 locations. “By opening up MoviePass to film lovers nationwide, we are expanding our support of the movie theater industry by helping drive traffic to all theaters during the critical summer season,” stated Spikes.
In January, the company said it raised funding from a number of financiers led by venture firm Animoca Brands, expanded to nine U.S. markets and inked partnerships with chains including B&b Theatres, Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas and Landmark Theatres.
- 5/25/2023
- by Erik Hayden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A former MoviePass executive was arrested Tuesday on charges that he embezzled $260,000 from the company to pay for a party at Coachella Music Festival.
Khalid Itum, 42, was indicted on two counts of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering. The charges allege that Itum submitted sham invoices to MoviePass to pay for the marketing event, which he had run through a separate company that he owned and controlled.
MoviePass collapsed in 2019, after losing hundreds of millions of dollars on its all-you-can-watch theatrical subscription business. Last November, the two top executives — Theodore Farnsworth and Mitch Lowe — were indicted on securities fraud charges for allegedly deceiving investors about the sustainability of the business.
Farnsworth, Lowe and Itum were also accused in a civil complaint from the Securities and Exchange Commission in September. The SEC complaint first leveled the allegation about Itum and the Coachella party.
In defending the SEC charges, Itum...
Khalid Itum, 42, was indicted on two counts of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering. The charges allege that Itum submitted sham invoices to MoviePass to pay for the marketing event, which he had run through a separate company that he owned and controlled.
MoviePass collapsed in 2019, after losing hundreds of millions of dollars on its all-you-can-watch theatrical subscription business. Last November, the two top executives — Theodore Farnsworth and Mitch Lowe — were indicted on securities fraud charges for allegedly deceiving investors about the sustainability of the business.
Farnsworth, Lowe and Itum were also accused in a civil complaint from the Securities and Exchange Commission in September. The SEC complaint first leveled the allegation about Itum and the Coachella party.
In defending the SEC charges, Itum...
- 2/22/2023
- by Gene Maddaus
- Variety Film + TV
Michael Flatley, the Irish dance phenomenon best known for “Lord of the Dance,” will open the Monaco Streaming Film Festival with his directorial debut, “Blackbird.”
Flatley, who wrote and financed the project, also stars in it as retired MI6 operative-turned-Barbados hotelier Victor Blackley. After a familiar agent — and romantic interest — turns up at his establishment, Blackley finds himself subsumed back into his old life, with potentially devastating consequences for millions of people if his mission fails.
Eric Roberts (“The Expendables”) and Patrick Bergin (“Sleeping with the Enemy”) co-star.
“Michael Flatley’s debut feature film is such a pleasant surprise — he brings his renowned stage presence and energy, which we have all experienced over the past 25 years, to the big screen in a gripping romantic thriller,” said Tony Davis, the festival’s founder. “Blackbird is beautifully filmed in stunning exotic locations, and a brilliant supporting cast help Flatley deliver something his...
Flatley, who wrote and financed the project, also stars in it as retired MI6 operative-turned-Barbados hotelier Victor Blackley. After a familiar agent — and romantic interest — turns up at his establishment, Blackley finds himself subsumed back into his old life, with potentially devastating consequences for millions of people if his mission fails.
Eric Roberts (“The Expendables”) and Patrick Bergin (“Sleeping with the Enemy”) co-star.
“Michael Flatley’s debut feature film is such a pleasant surprise — he brings his renowned stage presence and energy, which we have all experienced over the past 25 years, to the big screen in a gripping romantic thriller,” said Tony Davis, the festival’s founder. “Blackbird is beautifully filmed in stunning exotic locations, and a brilliant supporting cast help Flatley deliver something his...
- 7/5/2021
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
The holdouts still using MoviePass will find themselves out of luck this Fourth of July. Beginning on he holiday, the beleaguered movie theater subscription service announced that it will be out of commission for at least the next several weeks, citing technical issues with its app. (Via Variety.)
“Due to maintenance related issues, MoviePass services have been put on a temporary hold. Once we have resolved these technical problems, the service will be live again. We estimate this process will take several weeks. We sincerely appreciate your patience,” the company said in multiple July 3 tweets responding to disgruntled customers.
A statement obtained by Variety hinted at bigger financial issues for the company, which has been in massive decline since becoming a sensation for in 2017. In a statement about the temporary shutdown, the company said it “plans to use this time to recapitalize in order to facilitate a seamless transition and...
“Due to maintenance related issues, MoviePass services have been put on a temporary hold. Once we have resolved these technical problems, the service will be live again. We estimate this process will take several weeks. We sincerely appreciate your patience,” the company said in multiple July 3 tweets responding to disgruntled customers.
A statement obtained by Variety hinted at bigger financial issues for the company, which has been in massive decline since becoming a sensation for in 2017. In a statement about the temporary shutdown, the company said it “plans to use this time to recapitalize in order to facilitate a seamless transition and...
- 7/4/2019
- by Jude Dry
- Indiewire
Another weekend, another outage and unannounced change to service from MoviePass, and its parent company Helios and Matheson.
After two weeks of horrible press, with numerous changes to its popular $10 per month service, the subscription company strikes again, with another reported outage and news that the service will be making another major change to how customers can access films. After another brief service outage, MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe said that they were instituting a new two movie plan, which means that each day the service will give customers two films to choose from, instead of the normal selection of any film at the theater.
Continue reading MoviePass Has Lied, Misled, Cheated, & Failed Customers Repeatedly And F*ck It, I’m Out at The Playlist.
After two weeks of horrible press, with numerous changes to its popular $10 per month service, the subscription company strikes again, with another reported outage and news that the service will be making another major change to how customers can access films. After another brief service outage, MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe said that they were instituting a new two movie plan, which means that each day the service will give customers two films to choose from, instead of the normal selection of any film at the theater.
Continue reading MoviePass Has Lied, Misled, Cheated, & Failed Customers Repeatedly And F*ck It, I’m Out at The Playlist.
- 8/13/2018
- by Charles Barfield
- The Playlist
We may have reached the point, dear reader, at which MoviePass customers are spending more of their time reading about the company’s behind-the-scenes woes than actually using the app. After announcing (and then reversing) a price increase before settling on only allowing users to see three movies per month rather than one every day, the movie-ticket service had another hiccup this weekend when some customers were only allowed to chose between two films: “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” and, uh, “Slender Man.”
The service temporarily crashed for the third weekend in a row, according to the New York Post, and CEO Mitch Lowe confirmed that some users were only able to check in to the critically panned horror film or select showtimes of the latest Tom Cruise action flick. “Unfortunately, in order to stay financially stable we’ve had to curtail the service,” he said. “We had to right the ship...
The service temporarily crashed for the third weekend in a row, according to the New York Post, and CEO Mitch Lowe confirmed that some users were only able to check in to the critically panned horror film or select showtimes of the latest Tom Cruise action flick. “Unfortunately, in order to stay financially stable we’ve had to curtail the service,” he said. “We had to right the ship...
- 8/12/2018
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
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