Walmart is Converting Its Parking Lots Into Pop-up Drive-in Theaters For the Summer

Walmart said this week that it was converting some of its parking lots into drive-in theaters for the summer as the movie industry struggles amid the coronavirus pandemic. From a report: The retail behemoth is converting 160 of its parking lots across the US into drive-ins. These theaters will open in early August and remain open through October. The Walmart Drive-In will feature movies programmed by Tribeca Enterprises, the company behind the Tribeca Film Festival, which recently launched a summer movie drive-in series bringing films, music, and sporting events to as many US drive-ins as possible.

Catastrophic Exeunt

[SinGunner]

That place is bad enough without 100 cars angrily trying to leave at the exact same time. Not to mention the people who decide to get drunk/high mid-film.

Re:Catastrophic Exeunt

[rHBa]

Bah humbug... At least they're in their cars instead of breathing down each others necks...

Re:

[Antique Geekmeister]

When I was a child, it referred to people with Down's Syndrome. It's rude, but I've met severalof them in my life who tended to breathe with their mouths open for various medical reasons.

Simple solution...shop elsewhere

[Somervillain]

That place is bad enough without 100 cars angrily trying to leave at the exact same time. Not to mention the people who decide to get drunk/high mid-film.

Hmm...lots of solutions....have you tried shopping elsewhere?...shopping during the day?...shopping on nights when they're not showing movies?...My closest WalMart is depressing and pathetic...so I shop at Target...easy enough, problem solved.

Re:

[SinGunner]

My solution was to move to a country without Wal-Mart, where people are respectful to each other. Big improvement.

Re:

[MachineShedFred]

But you still felt compelled to whine about something that won't affect you at all. Meanwhile, there are other people out there that may benefit from this idea to allow people to get out of their houses and enjoy some family time without massively increased exposure to contagion.

Part of being respectful to others is also being empathetic towards others, which is something you have miserably failed at today.

Re:

[Dracos]

Then there is the herds of free-range shopping carts.

Re:

[i.r.id10t]

Dunno. One of my local wally worlds is actually built on the same lot as where the drive in theater used to be back in the 60s and 70s. Strangely, the city stopped growing in that direction in the late 70s so the existing roads, etc. handle it no differently than they did "back then".

Re:

[MachineShedFred]

Do you think they are going to have massive loudspeakers or something? Drive-in theaters have used FM tuners for literally decades for the movie sound.

Sure, once the movie is over, there will be some engine noise as people are leaving, but it won't be any more or less than a Saturday afternoon of people shopping. And if you live next to a Walmart, you're probably used to that anyway.

Re:

[XNormal]

Sound will probably use a phone app.

Genius! I forgot how much I miss drive-ins.

[Somervillain]

I'm old enough that when I was a kid, my small town had a drive-in. It was a great deal and a lot of fun. It wasn't as fancy as the theaters in the fancy suburbs, but there was a tiny playground to play at dusk, cheap snacks, and you could comfortably snuggle under a blanket and enjoy 2 movies for a few bucks.

I took it for granted when I was a kid and now I miss them, especially since I have small kids now. I love the notion of a semi-private space where I can bring healthy snacks for the kids, booze for me (their mom can drive) and relax...get most of the benefits of watching at home, while getting out of the house.

I would have never thought of it, but Wal Mart is perfect for that as most have huge parking lots that are barely used after dark....anything to get the kids out of quarantine and have something resembling a normal life.

Re:

[localroger]

The smell of the PIC mosquito repellant. Watching from the comfy nest I made in the back of my parents' station wagon. The greasy pizza from the concession, which did a steady business all through the movie because you could still see the movie while going about it, but then the mob scene at intermission. And intermissions. The sound of other cars arriving and finding their stations by the tinny speaker posts. (Nowadays drive-ins use FM radio to broadcast the audio, doesn't seem quite the same.) And f

Re:

[ShanghaiBill]

I'm old enough that when I was a kid, my small town had a drive-in.

My big town still has a drive-in.

West Wind Drive-In, San Jose CA [westwinddi.com].

Drive-In's make more sense in California where the weather is perfect 95% of the time. So they still exist here.

Re:

[fuzznutz]

Our area still has two drive-ins and we're in the rust belt. We had three others up until a few years ago but the dickhead studios required digital projectors and they couldn't afford the upgrade for a place that was only open half a year. The remaining ones do a great business even though it's pricey now. The closed ones USED to do a great business but they were also inexpensive; $10 per carload.

A couple malls nearby ran "drive-in" movies a couple weeks ago but required you to get a free ticket. The

Re:

[EzInKy]

My then girlfriend and now ex-wife and I lost our virginity together at the drive-in. Those were the days my friend.

Re:

[phantomfive]

Film selections from current Tribeca drive ins:

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Black Panther
Back to the Future
Spy Kids
Field of Dreams
Apollo 13
Jaws

It's an ok selection.

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:

[nonBORG]

Hyperbole, look it up.

I'll let you in on a little secret...

[rlwinm]

The movie industry is suffering because it makes horrible movies that are uninteresting SJW trash.

Yes I know, mod me down because orange man bad...

Re:

[malkavian]

If mods are watching, I wouldn't exactly call the parent flamebait. It's a valid viewpoint that represents a large part of the population, and can actually be discussed rationally. "Flamebait" is there for a reason, which is not "Look at me, I'm a heroic moderator who can cancel a subjective opinion I don't like by clicking a button".

Parking Logistics

[freeze128]

The parking lot shown in the picture in the article would be OK for a drive-in theater, but every Wal-Mart I have visited has fishbone parking stalls that alternate directions. This might be OK if there were 4 screens - one in each corner of the lot. However, you would probably also be staring right into the faces of other drivers all night.

Recently, because of Covid and social-distancing, Wal-Mart put labels on the floor of their aisles indicating which direction you should be moving. I laughed because i

Re:

[CaptQuark]

It wouldn't take much to temporarily re-stripe the parking lot for a movie layout. Surprisingly, Walmart actually sells a product to do this. https://www.walmart.com/ip/KRY... [walmart.com]

My guess is they are going to close the main parking lot, restrict normal shoppers to parking areas where the screen isn't visible, then charge a small fee to park in the best spots. Put a low-power FM transmitter for the audio and a projector in the middle of the parking area and you have a drive in. https://www.walmart.com/ip/ [walmart.com]

genius

[bhenson]

Think about it, people will get hungry or need to use the rest room. They will have a convenience snacks right there with a quick checkout line just for the drive in and bam making bank. Combine that with them cooking from the deli or making large amounts of popcorn and it will drive people into the building.

Don't even need to show a movie

[Patent Lover]

They don't even need to show a movie. Just sit and watch the Walmartians.