All the best happy endings have a plot twist. So it is in the real-life film business. Cinemas battered by forced closures, nervous consumers staying home, and Hollywood studios delaying the blockbuster releases they depend on, had hoped miracle drugs could save them from extinction. Good news on coronavirus vaccines recently sent shares soaring in debt-laden cinema groups such as AMC, Cineworld and Cinemark. But they plunged last week after Warner Bros said it would debut its films in the US next year simultaneously in cinemas and, for a month, on its HBO Max streaming service.
所有大团圆结局都历经曲折。现实生活中的电影业也是如此。被迫停业、紧张的消费者足不出户、好莱坞电影公司推迟电影院赖以生存的大片的上映时间，让电影院饱受打击，它们本寄希望于新冠特效药能使它们免受灭顶之灾。近来有关新冠疫苗的好消息使AMC、Cineworld及Cinemark等负债累累的影院集团股价飙升。但这些公司的股价上周大幅下跌，因为华纳兄弟(Warner Bros)表示，将于明年在美国院线发布其新片的同时，在其旗下HBO Max流媒体服务上同步上线一个月。