After more than a month of being closed, Texas Governor Greg Abbott is finally allowing theaters to reopen this weekend. Almost every movie theater has been closed since March. Along with theaters, restaurants, museums and retail stores are opening this Friday.

The major theaters are not planning to open right away, with some staying closed until July to prepare for the few upcoming tentpole releases including "Tenet," "Mulan," and "Wonder Woman 1984." Local theaters will be allowed to do their own thing as long as they follow social distancing guidelines.

Governor Abbott approves opening theaters this weekend

Governor Abbott understands some companies will remain closed, explaining that "this is permission to open, not a requirement." Theaters and other establishments are allowed to operate at 25% capacity, which makes it financially uneconomical for them to operate. Georgia was the first state restart their economies. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has received some backlash for reopening the state too quickly.

Right now, hair salons and barbershops, along with gyms are not allowed to reopen this weekend. Gov. Abbott hopes to have these businesses open by mid Mid-May. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is wanting people to stay indoors past the May 15th timeframe.

There is yet to be a new date in place. But many are expecting him to push it till June 1st.

Movie theaters still face the issue of public not in a rush to watch films

Some smaller cinemas may open up, they will have to follow a strict set of CDC guidelines, which might not be financially feasable right now. No big tentpole movies are being released from studios until July [VIDEO], so they would end up screening older films, which would benefit the smaller art theaters.

However, cinemas must also question whether people will visit movie theaters this soon or even in July when the major chains are finally re-opened.

Texas and Georgia are not the only states to finally reopen their economies. South Carolina, Oklahoma, and Alaska have also begun allowing businesses to begin re-opening. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said he got the approval from the White House and President Trump.

Abbott said he is not worried about opening this quickly.

Texas is now the largest state to allow theaters to reopen. Despite major chains not expecting to be opened for business until July. Theater owners and the National Association of Theater Owners now must wait and see how long it takes for moviegoers to return. Theater owners will now have to wait and see how long it will take for moviegoers to return, and how they will respond to impact of the Coronavirus, moving forward.
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