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The phones are staying off at the Alamo Drafthouse. Though the theater chain will host showtimes nationwide for the April 30 rerelease of Blumhouse’s killer doll thriller “M3GAN,” Variety confirms that Alamo locations won’t support the event screening’s integration with Movie Mate, Meta‘s new tech experience that aims to add an eventized flair to moviegoing by allowing audiences to access exclusive content on their own bright-screened devices in real-time during the film.
The Alamo Drafthouse specialty theater chain has been an enduring favorite among cinephile crowds for its in-house dining options, regular repertory programming and a strictly enforced no-phones policy. Per an Alamo spokesperson, the company’s “M3GAN” screenings on April 30 will stick to those rules, despite distributor Universal’s promotion of the second-screen experience. As policy goes, audience members that attempt to access Movie Mate during screenings will be shown the door by staff.
The rerelease of “M3GAN” is part of the “Halfway to Halloween” campaign from Blumhouse, this year celebrating the 15th anniversary of the horror producer. The banner is also putting “Annabelle” and “Ma” back in theaters for one-night-only engagements in May. But of the three titles, only “M3GAN” will be integrated with Movie Mate. The rerelease represents Meta’s maiden voyage for the technology, which the tech giant could potentially integrate with other theatrical screenings in the future.
Per Meta’s explanation, “M3GAN” rerelease viewers can access Movie Mate by direct-messaging the film’s official Instagram account. That will launch a chatbot that will “augment” and “uplevel” the “‘second screen’ viewing experience” by feeding users “sneak peeks, exclusive recorded messages from directors and talent from the films and surprise special appearances in select markets,” all while the screening unfolds.
The rerelease of “M3GAN” also comes as Blumhouse and Universal Pictures prepare to launch a sequel, “M3GAN 2.0,” which is set to hit theaters on June 27.
