As of November 30, 2025, the traditional movie theater industry clearly still exists and has not "gone out of business."

• Major U.S. chains continue to operate at large scale. For example, Cinemark operates 497 theaters with 5,653 screens across the U.S. and Latin America as of March 2025. (en.wikipedia.org) Regal is not only open but investing in upgrades, such as converting its Edwards Greenway Grand Palace in Houston into an IMAX with Laser location in 2025. (houstonchronicle.com) AMC also continues to operate and even distributes some films, accounting for over $200M of the 2023 domestic box office via AMC Theatres Distribution. (the-numbers.com)
• The domestic theatrical market is still generating billions in annual revenue, indicating an active, not defunct, industry. The U.S. box office totaled about $9.9B in 2023 and $8.6B in 2024. (the-numbers.com)
• In 2025, big studio releases are still opening widely in theaters. Wicked: For Good debuted with $150M in North America alone, playing in 4,115 theaters, and helped push the 2025 domestic box office into the multi‑billion‑dollar range. (apnews.com)

While some specific theater brands (e.g., ArcLight) have closed or changed hands, other operators have taken over many of those locations, and the sector as a whole remains very much alive. (en.wikipedia.org) This matches Friedberg’s prediction that movie theaters would not simply disappear, even after the pandemic disruption.