Disgusted movie lovers stormed out of a cinema after it was "overrun with rats" after nine rodents were spotted in one show.
19-year-old Lilliana visited the AMC Orpheum in New York to watch "Wonka" when a rodent ran past her and a friend at the 4pm showing on December 21. The seven-screen cinema was "filthy" and "gross" as the rodents made an appearance during the previews which "really scared her friend."
Connelly Roberge, 17, who was with Lilliana, said customers were seen fleeing the cinema after the rodents ran around their shoes. “While the ads were playing we saw the rat going around the theater and promptly ran out. Other people noticed it too, and were obviously freaked out", she said.
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Customers took to Nextdoor, a neighbourhood company, to express their dismay at the cinema and warned people to stay away from the AMC Orpheum. “When you’re just trying to unwind with a movie you don’t want to have to worry about a street rat crawling on you,” Roberge said.
However, staff at the cinema were not bothered by the rats, according to Roberge, who added: “We went to customer service to ask if there was something they could do about it. They quite literally asked us if we were gonna stay . . . as if these conditions were normal. They gave us confused looks about why we would come up to notify them. They almost seemed to want us to leave.”
Lilliana admitted she thought the staff would try and chase the rats out of the cinema or move them to a new screening but they refused to do anything productive, she revealed: “We thought they would turn on the lights, get a broomstick or something and chase the rat out. But they just didn’t really care.” The friends were denied a refund despite the ghastly conditions, which meant they had to sit and watch the film for two hours.
Back in July, another disgruntled cinema-goer named Austin M, wrote that he spotted “rodents in Auditorium 7 on bottom floor, running in rows” during a screening of “Mission Impossible.” Yorkville resident Jazmin also said he witnessed “two fat rats scurrying” in her section during a summer screening. When she complained to staff, “their lack of reaction” told her “they know there is a vermin problem and they just hope people don’t notice or complain.”
The customer pleaded with locals to avoid the cinema, she wrote on Yelp: “Please for the sake of your health, sanity, and simple want to enjoy a movie in peace, DO NOT GO HERE!!! This place should be condemned and shut down.”
The city Health Department, which inspects cinemas and gives them letter grades, had previously given the cinema an "A" for hygiene. “We investigate all complaints and will work to ensure that any problematic conditions are fixed,” a city Health Department spokesperson.
The manager of the cinema refused to comment but Ryan Noonan, vice president of corporate communications at AMC Theatres, said: “It’s an issue that AMC and the theater team takes seriously. The treatment protocol from the pest control vendor includes multiple visits, inspections, and proactive treatments each month."