MoviePass is making its long-awaited return in the United States with the launch of a new subscription service.
The service was first seen as a limited beta in September 2022. The current version appears to be largely identical to the original, albeit slightly more expansive. You pay a monthly fee to watch a certain number of films in theatres without having to purchase a ticket. There are four price tiers ranging from $10 to $40. Instead of giving users a fixed number of films to watch in a month, MoviePass uses a credit system, with each tier giving users a fixed amount to use.
The $10 Basic tier provides the fewest credits, with 34 credits allowing people to watch one to three films per month. The $20 Standard Plan provides 72 credits per month for three to seven viewings. Premium ($30 per month) grants 113 credits good for five to eleven films.
The most expensive plan, the $40 Pro, provides 640 credits, allowing users to watch up to 30 films over the course of 30 days. Consider MoviePass Pro to be the “spiritual successor” to the previous (and disastrous) version of the service.
Cost variations
A MoviePass representative told us that the cost (in credits) of a single movie is determined by the “day of the week” and the time you watch it, but no further information was provided. According to a recent TechCrunch report, Tuesdays are the cheapest days to open, while weekends are among the most expensive. Unused credits are carried over to the following month. According to company CEO Stacy Spikes, customers “can have up to a maximum of two months of unused credits” on their account.
These are the prices for the general public in the United States. If you live in Southern California or the New York metropolitan area, the plans are more expensive. According to a company representative, Basic is $20, Standard is $30, Premium is $40, and Pro is $60, with no option to purchase a lower tier. However, users in those areas receive roughly twice as many credits. In Los Angeles, for example, Standard offers 140 instead of 72.
Availability
Why is MoviePass using this system? According to the company, it allows members to “choose the plan that best suits their viewing habits and budget.” There’s something for everyone, whether you’re a casual moviegoer or a movie nerd.
We haven’t mentioned a couple of things yet. The subscription does not allow you to watch 3D films, but there are plans to add “large format and premium screens” (presumably IMAX) soon. Over 4,000 theatres across the country support the service. The official website contains a complete list of all locations. The memorial service is now available, just in time for Memorial Day. This holiday season should be an interesting test for MoviePass.
We asked the same representative if they could give us exact numbers on how much it will cost to see a movie because that’s the one piece of information that’s strangely missing from all of this. And whether or not there are plans for an international launch. This story will be updated in the future.
