Police presence inside a showing of ‘The Butler’ causes outrage

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TheGrio spoke with Spicer on Sunday by telephone. He said Regal Cinemas had instructed employees not to talk to the media. “We cannot speak for the entire company as agents of this location,” he said. Asked whether Regal Cinemas sets policy for the presence of police inside the theater at the corporate level, as opposed to individual theater managers doing so, he said the corporate office does not. Spicer said he was not the manager on duty Saturday night, and referred media questions to the company’s media hotline, which was answered by a recording on Sunday. Spicer said the public’s questions or concerns about the policy were being directed to a different hotline number, 1-877-Tell-Reg.

Regal Cinemas is owned by Regal Entertainment Group, based in Knoxville, Tennessee. TheGrio attempted to reach the corporate office on Sunday but got a recording. Attempts to reach the general manager of the Silver Spring theater, Michael Fletcher, were also unsuccessful.

The Butler is based on the life of Eugene Allen, who worked as a butler at the White House for 34 years, through eight presidential administrations.

As for Flowers, who works as a union organizer, she has vowed not to let the matter drop, noting the swift response on social media. She made it clear that she wants Regal to respond.

“If this was an isolated incident and it didn’t speak to the core of what people are feeling in the post Trayvon [Martin] era it wouldn’t be a problem,” she said. “But we’re constantly being treated as second-class citizens and we’re sick of it.”

“Over the years we have developed an outstanding relationship with Regal Cinemas,” commented the Weinstein Company’s President of Distribution and Erik Lomis. “Having released a multitude of films together we stand by Regal’s respectful and equal treatment of all moviegoers.”

UPDATE: Russ Nunley, a spokesman for Regal Cinemas, emailed theGrio a statement late Sunday revising an initial statement sent Sunday afternoon. The revised statement read:

Regarding your inquiry, Regal Entertainment Group routinely employs security personnel to ensure the safety of all of our guests and staff. When a theatre experiences sold out showings of any feature, security will assist with crowd control and guest assistance throughout the facility, including auditoriums.

This weekend our Majestic theatre experienced a tremendous guest response to the feature ‘Lee Daniels’ The Butler’ such that additional showtimes were added to meet our guests’ demands.

At no time last night did local management receive any guest complaints or concerns about our security or staff, who worked diligently to meet all of our guests’ needs.

To the extent any guests were disappointed with their experience, we welcome the opportunity to address their concerns and provide them the best entertainment experience possible in their future visits to our theatres. [sic]

Read the Storify of Tiffany’s story below, and follow Joy Reid on Twitter at @TheReidReport.

[View the story “Police presence at ‘The Butler’ showing causes outrage” on Storify]