Opinion Editor Carlos Soto-Angulo argues the unwritten rules of theater etiquette are becoming easier to break and harder to uphold in the ever-changing moviegoing sphere.
Opinion Editor Carlos Soto-Angulo argues the unwritten rules of theater etiquette are becoming easier to break and harder to uphold in the ever-changing moviegoing sphere.
There used to be an unspoken rule when going to the movies. Once the lights went down, the room belonged to the film. While people still laughed and whispered occasionally, most audiences understood the movie theater was a shared space, so there was a collective role in protecting the experience for everyone else.
Today, the rules feel less certain.
Movie theaters offer something increasingly difficult to find: hundreds of strangers gathered in one room, paying attention to the same thing at the same time. However, audiences have developed highly individualized ways of consuming entertainment.
A person might spend around $15 or more on a ticket, order food to their seat and treat the evening like a sporting event. Another person might spend the same amount because they want two uninterrupted hours with a film they have been waiting months to see.
Both people have purchased the same product, and the theater has to accommodate both. This becomes especially difficult when one person’s behavior affects everyone else’s viewing experience.
A good example of the shift in the movie theater scene is The 400 Theater in Rogers Park.
The 400 was previously the longest-operating movie theater in Chicago, but after a historic 111-year run, it had to close its doors in 2023. However, as of July 31, The 400 has reopened under new management.
“I think that films were seen as a community event previously,” said Loreal Evans, a long-time moviegoer and manager of The 400 Theater. “It’s coming back to that, but I also think the world was set in isolation for a while, and that was our moviegoing experience.”
Similarly, a 2024 YouGov survey of 1,134 U.S. adults shows how complicated theater etiquette has become.
78% of respondents supported banning phone use during movies, while 65% supported a no-talking policy. Only 11% considered speaking at a regular volume acceptable during a movie, and 50% said texting during the screening is intolerable.
Still, theaters are widely attracting audiences.
76% of Americans visited a movie theater in 2025, representing more than 250 million people, according to Fandango’s 2026 Moviegoing Trends & Insights Study. Gen Z attendance also increased, with the average visiting a theater seven times in 2025, an increase from about five visits on average in 2024, according to Cinema United’s December 2025 Update.
That being said, 78% of young viewers said they watch TV and movies on YouTube or social media platforms, and nearly half reported they watch movies on a personal device like a phone or computer rather than a TV or in a theater.
Given that most audiences are accustomed to having full control of their viewing experience, theaters are trying to make the idea of relinquishing authority for a few hours — given the ridiculous runtimes of movies nowadays — more appealing.
In September 2025, North American theaters invested more than $1.5 billion in the moviegoing experience. The investments included upgraded screens, projectors, sound systems and seats, along with expanded food and beverage options.
Dine-in cinemas now account for about 10% of the North American box office. A movie can come with a reclining seat, dinner, cocktails, an oversized popcorn bucket and a premium screen. Some theaters are attached to arcades, bowling alleys or other entertainment options, and others organize fan events and special screenings.
This is part of what is known as the “experience economy,” where theaters increasingly function as entertainment destinations. It seems to be a success, seeing as more than $1.2 billion was spent in U.S. cinemas in August.
In fact, Gen Z’s leading reasons for choosing theaters included a good selection of movies, an out-of-home theater experience, excitement for more social gatherings and premium formats, with 84% of moviegoers attending IMAX, Dolby or 3D screenings.
But this, in part, is contributing to the rise in ticket prices, making moviegoing less attainable for the average viewer.
Evans said going to the movies shouldn’t be a hyper-expensive outing, something The 400 Theater has always believed in.
“It was named the 400 Theater because of the similarities to the Fortune 500, so they did a play on words to have more accessible moviegoing experiences for lower-income communities,” she said. “When they opened, they were already doing things for the community, which I thought was cool.”
If theaters want to become easily accessible social spaces, audiences need to understand how to be social without taking over the room. The same applies to the industry’s push toward immersive experiences and destination-style theaters.
The more movie theaters emphasize what makes moviegoing different from staying home and streaming, the more audiences have to recognize the responsibility which comes with sharing the space.
Evans said she believes the community plays a big part in garnering excitement for the movies, and says they should do their best to upkeep their local venue.
“First and foremost, take care of your theater,” she said. “The staff in the theater are going to do everything we possibly can, but I do think that it’s also a community effort. I think the energy of having pride in a place brings people into it.”
Movie theaters have always depended on audience reactions. A comedy needs laughter, a horror movie benefits from screams and a dramatic ending deserves applause. A packed theater can make a movie more immersive than at home.
However, the problem comes when an audience member’s reaction becomes more noticeable than the movie.
Etiquette, then, is less about enforcing silence than recognizing the people around you. A theater doesn’t need to become a library, and audiences shouldn’t have to suppress every laugh or reaction. The responsibility is knowing when a personal habit begins interfering with someone else’s experience.
The theater provides the screen, the sound and the setting, but the audience creates much of the atmosphere — unless seated in a 4DX movie, in which case the audience is along for the ride — so increased courtesy allows both parts of the experience to coexist.
“Try your best to see it as if you’re seeing an art piece with somebody,” Evans said. “Treat it like a gallery.”
Jack Dumanski contributed reporting.
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