# Moviegoers: Do you sneak snacks into the theatre, given the opportunity? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 16, 2009, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049 "2009-10-16T16:55:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![vix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a88e4f/32.png) [@vix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vix)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/81 "2009-10-17T20:37:26Z")
> [@CrazyChop](#): > > That said, I have problem with people bringing in an entire three piece KFC chicken meals and munched on them throughout the show and making smacking noises. And the smell. Once in college a bunch of us brought in Chinese. We kept it hidden until after the staff smelled it and made a show of trying to find us in the dark. Then we chowed down. These days the most I’ll bring in is a candy bar or maybe a bottle of water. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/82 "2009-10-17T20:48:07Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > I guess what I’m getting at is this: I don’t feel an overwhelming ethical concern that I’m stealing from anyone, when the financial model makes it unaffordable to do the expected. As the alternative is to either not go at all, or to go but not have any snacks at all, I’m affecting their bottom line not at all. It’s not like I’m saying “Twizzlers are 4 dollars for 12 pieces of candy. That’s robbery. I’m going to steal that candy from them instead”. I agree, although would add one alternative to your list, which is, “Buy a token item or two from the concession stand and smuggle in the rest,” which is what we do. We all like movie popcorn, so what I usually do when I see a movie with the kids is to smuggle in juice boxes for them, along with 3 extra popcorn boxes. (I have some cool red-and-white striped plastic ones I got from Target.) I order one large popcorn, and then when we get to the theater I divvy the popcorn up amongst everyone’s little popcorn boxes and pass out the juice boxes. Theater gets a little concession money from us, but we’re not breaking the bank to see a movie. Although I should be clear that we’re not doing this out of some altruistic concern for the movie theater’s bottom line. We just like movie popcorn. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/83 "2009-10-17T21:25:53Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Does anyone know whether it’s true that the theaters make a larger cut of the ticket price in later weeks of the run, vs. earlier weeks? e.g. first week they pay 80%, second week they pay 70%, third 60 etc.? I worked for a theatre chain long ago (well, I worked for an ad agency that had a theatre chain as a client, and I worked on the account) and this was indeed the case for that chain. It wasn’t necessarily the first week, but the longer the run was, the bigger the cut the theatre got. There were movies they lost money on, nobody wanted to see them, but they were contractually required to keep the movie and keep running it for x number of showings. Didn’t happen that way a lot, but part of my job was working on stuff to get people into the seats for those kinds of movies, usually on short notice. The worst one (that I remember) was _Garbo Talks_. For some reason, after its first showing, nobody wanted to see that one. ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2009, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/84 "2009-10-17T21:45:48Z")
Nope. I don’t wanna get kicked out and I make sure to eat right before the movie so I am not hungry nor thirsty. Its my small fight against the way marked up prices of concessions stands. ---
**Author:** ![Henrichek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5daacb/32.png) [@Henrichek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Henrichek)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/85 "2009-10-18T00:01:06Z")
Humm, you seem to have very authoritarian theatre rules. I have never heard of any such policy at theatres here, so I’d like an option along the lines of “No, I bring my snacks openly because there is no rule against it”. ETA: On second thought, with the question phrased as it is, my answer is that I would be willing, if such a rule exists. ---
**Author:** ![Mom-of-Andrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8c91f0/32.png) [@Mom-of-Andrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mom-of-Andrew)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/86 "2009-10-18T00:25:54Z")
Cans of soda? CANS of soda? Never in a million years. One liter bottles of soda. Cracked open in the parking lot to get the initial ‘hiss’ out of the way. Then they will open quietly in the theatre. And drunk through the really long straws from the convenience store, so you don’t tilt it up in the air for everyone to see. But yes, every single time. Along with popcorn from the concession stand. ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/87 "2009-10-18T00:38:23Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > All we ever eat at the movies is popcorn, which is cheap here. > > A movie reviewer once told me the concession stand was where the cinemas made their money. Ticket sales largely go back to the movie studios, and what little they get to keep for themselves don’t cover diddly-squat. How true is that? I’ve always had more sympathy for the cinemas in the US charging high concession-stand prices ever since I heard that, but is it true? Yeah, that’s pretty much true. If memory serves, the theaters get 10% of the ticket sales for opening weekend, and something like 30% after that. Nowadays, ticket sales plummet dramatically after opening weekend. As such, theaters make very little off ticket sales. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/88 "2009-10-18T01:29:25Z")
To paraphrase Stephen Wright… Sure, I haven’t had a barbecue in a long time… ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/89 "2009-10-18T02:45:53Z")
No, I don’t like to eat in a theatre. ---
**Author:** ![BigBertha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@BigBertha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigBertha)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/90 "2009-10-18T04:13:44Z")
I just thought of a cool way to do this; go there, buy a small drink, save the empty cup, then if you take a drink in next time, simply pour it into the theaters cup. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/91 "2009-10-18T04:31:08Z")
If I remember to, I will. Usually I just bring in something to drink. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/92 "2009-10-18T04:40:57Z")
I try to see most movies during a matinee or a special early showing. I’ve got so many free popcorn tickets from the AMC moviewatcher, that I don’t even try to bring in food. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/93 "2009-10-18T05:35:30Z")
I sneak whiskey into theaters. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/94 "2009-10-18T05:56:38Z")
> [@Mom-of-Andrew](#): > > Cans of soda? CANS of soda? Never in a million years. One liter bottles of soda. Cracked open in the parking lot to get the initial ‘hiss’ out of the way. Then they will open quietly in the theatre. And drunk through the really long straws from the convenience store, so you don’t tilt it up in the air for everyone to see. > > But yes, every single time. Along with popcorn from the concession stand. You’re wasting your effort; the employees don’t give a fuck. Though it can be fun to pretend you’re smuggling. I used to stick to only bottles myself, hell, my record was a full two liter of Coke down the front of my baggy 90s jeans in high school. But others have noted in this thread that they not only bring cans, but crack them open in the theater without any attempt to muffle the sound or disguise it with a cough. There’s no repercussions. The employees also don’t care because they’re not there. Ushers are a thing of the past most everywhere. I can remember men with little traffic cone flashlights that would guide you to a row of seats in the dark and hush rowdy folks, but I haven’t seen one in a major (non-indie/artsy/local) theater in at least a decade. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/95 "2009-10-18T06:11:34Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > The thing is: with the snacks being SO overpriced, it becomes unaffordable to buy them on top of paying 8-10 bucks for a ticket. For a family of 4, you could be looking at 80 dollars for a 2-hour movie. The alternatives are: 1) don’t go at all, 2) go, but don’t have any munchies, 3) go, but bring your own, 4) go, and spend your entertainment money in one shot and don’t see the next movie… Obviously the theater is voting for #4 vs. the other 3. The financial model really isn’t sustainable, in my opinion. At some point it becomes so pricey that people realized the theater experience simply isn’t worth the outlay in cash, then the theater makes no money at all. > > I guess what I’m getting at is this: I don’t feel an overwhelming ethical concern that I’m stealing from anyone, when the financial model makes it unaffordable to do the expected. As the alternative is to either not go at all, or to go but not have any snacks at all, I’m affecting their bottom line not at all. Sure, I get that, so long as you accept the same sort of reasoning from the music downloader. ‘They’re charging $10-$12 for something that I can get for $5 on the sidewalk and for free from a thousand places online. I want hundreds of albums a year, but I can’t come anywhere close to affording that, so I’ll just download whatever seems interesting, and occasionally I’ll buy something I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t listened to it for free first, and in the end their bottom line is hardly affected, if at all.’ > [@](#): > > Now this one _is_ explicitly theft of services. Arguably, unless you’re sneaking into a sold-out show and taking a chair from a paid patron (who, after failing to find a seat, is going to complain to management and get his money back), you’re not actually affecting their bottom line… but you’ve purchased a ticked for a specific showing. But what if someone’s finances are such that it’s just not worth it for them to buy a movie ticket if they can’t use it to sneak into one or more extra movies? At that point they’re in the same exact situation as you and your snacks (assuming your theater does in fact ban outside food and drink . . . which you should probably ask about if you actually want to know the answer, instead of just hoping to see a sign). ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/96 "2009-10-18T06:16:44Z")
My girlfriend and I routinely sneak beer in. The movie is more fun that way. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/97 "2009-10-18T06:41:52Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > My girlfriend and I routinely sneak beer in. The movie is more fun that way. I’ve never done that only because I always have to drive. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/98 "2009-10-18T07:52:47Z")
Most of the time I don’t snack during movies at all, but on those rare occasions that I do bother, I definitely bring my own. Why pay outrageous prices for crappy candy when I can have good chocolate for less money? Sometimes I wish they would sell, say, herbal tea, though. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/99 "2009-10-18T14:17:14Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > But what if someone’s finances are such that it’s just not worth it for them to buy a movie ticket if they can’t use it to sneak into one or more extra movies? Then they shouldn’t watch that second movie. Watching a particular movie not some unalienable right. ---
**Author:** ![Dripping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dripping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dripping)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049/100 "2009-10-18T17:44:54Z")
Having just come from the “how do people get so fat” thread, I find this discusion a little eyebrow-raising. Its interesting that people have been conditioned by movie theaters to automatically want/expect big portions of extremely high-calorie foods when they sit down to watch a movie. So much so that its now common, apparently, for people to _sneak_ these types of foods in. Funny that no one has mentioned sneaking in a bag of carrot sticks.😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moviegoers-do-you-sneak-snacks-into-the-theatre-given-the-opportunity/514049.md?page=6)