'The Batman' Screening Disrupted After Live Bat Released In US Theatre

A visitor brought a live bat to a screening of The Batman in Austin, Texas, prompting the staff to pause the film. The incident happened Friday and a video of the incident was posted on Twitter by people who went to Moviehouse & Eatery to watch Matt Reeves' film.

A spokesperson at Cinépolis, which owns the cinema hall, said that the guest was pulling a prank and not trying to harm anyone.

I'm at the Batman movie and there are real bats in the theater…. #Imcooloffthat pic.twitter.com/NdSkMITXQi

— J (@Jeremiah24_) March 5, 2022

“To ensure a prank like this does not again occur, we've added additional security and are checking all bags upon guest entry,” the spokesperson Annelise Holyoak said in a statement, as carried by Variety.

Local television channel KXAN reported that the theater offered to give refunds, but a majority of the crowd opted to stay and watch the film.

A user, who was inside the cinema hall when the incident happened, posted a video of staff members trying to "bait it into flying out".

I was there. They tried to bait it into flying out pic.twitter.com/tkPLMJdtbm

— Vincent Genovese (@sparty1211) March 5, 2022

"We will use the projector to turn that light off and I'm gonna turn all these lights off and try and get it to go into this lighted area. If you are uncomfortable being in the dark with a bat, please remove yourself now," the staff member is heard saying, with the guests laughing in the background.

The Batman - the new DC movie with Robert Pattinson - generated $248.5 million (approximately Rs 1,910 crore) at the worldwide box office on its opening weekend, with a three-day estimate of $128.5 million (approximately Rs 988 crore) from theatres in the US and Canada, and the remaining $120 million (approximately Rs 922 crore) coming in from 74 overseas markets.

It is the second pandemic-era move to cross the $100 million mark in a single weekend after Spider Man: No Way Home.

In India, the new superhero film grossed over $3.4 million (approximately Rs 26 crore) at the box office.