McGrath says the existing capacity rules don't make economic sense for the chain.
"Unless we can get 50 people per auditorium, we'd be operating at a loss," he said on Wednesday.
"We'd like to see higher."
"Businesses and sectors not able to open or viably operate due to Stage 3 restrictions are invited to visit Ontario.ca/reopen to submit a reopening proposal," Timpson added in an email.
The number of people allowed inside a movie theatre varies by province, depending on the impact of COVID-19 and the reopening measures introduced by local health authorities.
In
Cineplex has reopened 35 locations in provinces where distancing measures are less restrictive. The company introduced new seating plans to meet guidelines and boosted its cleaning procedures, but its
Landmark Cinemas and Imagine Cinemas, two other chains that operate a number of multiplexes, have kept their theatres shut in the province as well.
Some single-screen, independent theatres have reopened in
Many of those theatres are showing older titles, such as "Jurassic Park" and "The Goonies," or more recent films released before the shutdown, including "Emma" and "The Invisible Man."
The urgency around theatres reopening has been minimal this summer, partly because
In
"The combination of the number of people that we are seeing come now, along with the wage subsidy program, certainly makes this sustainable for us, at least for the next couple of months," McGrath said.
"As long as we keep getting a few — even if they're smaller films — coming in, new films along with the catalogue product, we're able to sustain that and operate profitably."
Cineplex has faced a number of hurdles in recent months as it contended with a full closure of its theatres amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company was originally set to be purchased by
Cineplex has denied the claims and says Cineworld is backing away from the deal because of buyer's remorse.
Last week, Cineplex laid off more than 130 employees as it looks towards an uncertain slate of movie releases in the coming months.
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Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version included an incorrect total of reopened theatres provided by Cineplex.
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