Biggest US cinema chain introduces bag checks amid fear of gun violence

Regal Entertainment Group has become the first large US movie theatre chain to introduce bag searches for moviegoers following a series of shootings at cinemas around the country.

Regal, the largest US movie chain with some 570 theatres, updated its admittance procedures with a notice saying it had adopted the policy in order to make “customers and staff feel safe when visiting or working in our theatres”.

“Security issues have become a daily part of our lives in America... To ensure the safety of our guests and employees, backpacks and bags of any kind are subject to inspection prior to admission. We acknowledge that this procedure can cause some inconvenience and that it is not without flaws, but hope these are minor in comparison to increased safety,” the notice on Regal’s website said.

It was not clear when the new policy was adopted but moviegoers in some states reported being asked to open their bags before entering on Tuesday night.

The bag checks follow a shooting inside a privately owned Southern Theatres movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana, in July that killed two people and wounded seven during a screening of comedy Trainwreck.

That attack was followed a week later by an incident in Nashville, Tennessee, during which a man with a hatchet and a pellet gun unleashed pepper spray during a showing of “Mad Max: Fury Road” at a Carmike Cinemas Inc multiplex. He was later killed by police.