The two biggest US theater chains have banned Universal movies because of Trolls World Tour

Regal Cinemas owner Cineworld has joined AMC Theaters in declaring that it will not show Universal movies — or films from any other studios that “fail to respect” the theatrical window.

The decision comes after Universal touted the success of Trolls World Tour’s straight-to-digital release. Yesterday, AMC Theaters decided to bar Universal movies because of comments made by NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell, arguing that Universal didn’t take theater chains into consideration when it made the decision to go direct to consumer. The ban extends to Odeon Cinemas, which is an AMC company, in the United Kingdom. Other partners “called us in timely manner and told us that in the current situation they want to shorten window for movies that were...

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