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If Warner Bros. & movie theaters don't do special A Minecraft Movie audience participation screenings, they're missing out

It's time for Warner Bros. to be the chicken jockey with A Minecraft Movie

Features by Joshua Lapin-Bertone, Contributing writer

Published on Thu Apr 10 2025

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A Minecraft Movie has been a mixed blessing for theaters.

On the one hand, the film’s box office success has been a lifeline for theaters, who have been struggling financially since the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, rowdy audiences have been screaming along with the lines, loudly applauding, running through the aisles, and in some cases throwing food. This has even led to authorities removing people from the theater.

A Minecraft Movie is keeping the lights on, but it’s driving theater employees crazy.

According to Box Office Mojo, the domestic box office in 2024 was $8.5 billion, which is a big number, but still behind 2019’s $11.3 billion. Movie theaters haven’t caught up with their pre-pandemic numbers, and this has become difficult in the face of inflation and a possible economic recession.

Even reliable cash cows like the Marvel Cinematic Universe aren’t bringing the numbers they once did, so films like Minecraft go a long way in helping the industry. Right now, Warner Bros. and theaters have an interesting opportunity to capitalize on the viral trend that is the Minecraft theater experience.

They just need to learn a lesson from Wicked.

When Wicked was released in theaters in November 2024, audiences were discouraged from loudly singing along. Speaking from experience, this was a hard challenge, but nevertheless, I persevered. The following month, Universal Pictures released a sing-along version of the film.

When moviegoers wanted to see Wicked, they were able to choose a regular screening where they could enjoy the music amongst the silent audience, or a sing-along screening, where they could belt out the lyrics alongside an auditorium of like-minded fans.

Guess what? This helped Wicked’s box office and encouraged repeat viewings.

Do you see where I’m going with this?

Warner Bros. should embrace the audience participation culture that has grown among A Minecraft Movie and work with theaters to schedule 'chicken jockey screenings' where audiences are encouraged to clap, cheer, and recite lines along with the characters. Throwing food and getting too rowdy would still be prohibited, but fans would still be able to have their audience participation experience without bothering other moviegoers. If you want to watch A Minecraft Movie and hear all the dialogue without your auditorium sounding like a middle school cafeteria, buy a ticket for a regular screening in theater 8. If you want the community experience of shouting “I AM STEVE” alongside Jack Black, buy a ticket for the “chicken jockey screening” in theater 9.

If there’s anything Gen Z loves, it’s viral trends, and this is the perfect way to milk the trend and guarantee a repeat audience. I’ve taken a few children in my life to the film, and they wanted to return simply for the community experience that came along with the audience participation. They loved the movie, but what they loved more was the euphoria they got from celebrating Jack Black saying “chicken jockey” alongside their peers.

If any of this sounds familiar to you, then you might be remembering The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a 1975 rock musical that found new life by building a culture around midnight screenings that encouraged audience participation.

Warner Bros. and theater owners can tell people to stop shouting “chicken jockey.” It won’t stop the film from making money.

But if they lean into the trend and schedule “chicken jockey screenings,” the film will make even more money. A lot more.

The question is, how will they handle the trend?

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Joshua Lapin-Bertone: Joshua is a pop culture writer specializing in comic book media. His work has appeared on the official DC Comics website, the DC Universe subscription service, HBO Max promotional videos, the Batman Universe fansite, and more. In between traveling around the country to cover various comic conventions, Joshua resides in Florida where he binges superhero television and reads obscure comics from yesteryear.