Drive-in movies are making a comeback — at least in online conversations: Report
Variety Senior Correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister discusses Apple's announcement to bring film to theaters.
Drive-in movie theaters are becoming popular again, or at least they’re a trending conversation topic online, according to a new report.
Facebook IQ, the social media giant’s research branch, found that people were talking about the retro theaters throughout August. The findings were published on Tuesday’s “Topics to Watch,” which claims to highlight subjects that are “on the cusp of going mainstream” on Facebook.
According to the findings, the topic “drive-in theaters” has increased 1.3 times in year-over-year growth and .5 times in month-over-month growth.
The report also indicates that women are talking about drive-ins more than men are, with women between 35 and 49 years old talking about the theaters the most.
“While thousands of drive-in theaters existed across the U.S. decades ago, there are only a few hundred locations now,” the Facebook IQ report said. “These theaters are having a resurgence as people seek out nostalgic experiences.”
According to Facebook IQ, people discussed drive-in movie theaters a lot during the month of August. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
The report also said that while some of the drive-ins are offering older movies and popcorn, other theaters are showing newly released films and are selling food, cocktails and beer.
“Going to the movies is coming back into style, and drive-in theaters are giving people a chance to feel nostalgic while supporting businesses in their local communities,” the report said.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
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| FB | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
Other than just online conversations, there are more drive-in theaters being built, including one in Michigan, MLive.com reported last week.
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Facebook IQ also found that people discussed cabins and camping, climate change, wind turbines and European dishes Kielbasa and Panzanella last month, according to its report.