MoviePass Is Back and Worse Than Ever Imagined

Back in the heyday of MoviePass, it felt like we were the ones scamming them. With the introduction of the resurrected MoviePass 2.0, it seems that the tables have turned. They are officially the ones now scamming us.

For those who are unaware, MoviePass was a movie ticket subscription service that became so popular (due to its low price) that it forced theaters to implement similar programs such as AMC A-List. Despite making a splash, MoviePass quickly went bankrupt in 2019 due to an unsustainable business model. Now, MoviePass is back from the dead and ready for vengeance on your eyeballs. 

That’s right, your favorite failed subscription movie service is relaunching this summer. But instead of offering unlimited movies, they will introduce a tiered subscription system. According to new CEO Stacey Spikes, customers will buy credits that they can redeem for free movie showings. However, Spikes also showed off another way that lemmings customers can earn credits — watching ads & trailers while their eyeballs are being tracked.

Using a bug feature called “pre-show,” customers will get said credits in exchange for watching ads on their phones. In a move that not eleven Steve Jobs could have predicted, Spikes roamed the stage in a black turtleneck saying that the accompanying app will track their eyeballs to make sure people are actually watching. “What it does is it basically creates a transaction between you and the brand.” No, Mr. Spikes Jobs,  it doesn’t.

He adds, “Your phone, your device uses your own facial detection,” Spikes added. “It doesn’t go to the cloud, nobody goes through anything other than you and your information in yours. And you opt-in to do it on your own.” MoviePass 2.0 sounds like something pulled straight out of your favorite Sam Rami horror movie. Time will tell, but this all sounds like another bankruptcy just waiting to happen.

Note: You could also go with Clockwork Orange or Black Mirror analogies, but that just seems too on the nose in this instance.

Cover Photo: izusek (Getty Images)