Animal control was called to a theater in Austin after a live bat was released during a screening of 'The Batman'

• A live bat was released during a screening of "The Batman" at a cinema in Austin, Texas.
• Videos were shared on Twitter of employees attempting to usher the bat out of the theater.

Animal control had to be called to a Cinépolis theater in Austin, Texas, after a live bat was released during a screening of "The Batman" as part of a prank, according to a report by CBS Austin.

Last week Saturday, an audience member, whose Twitter handle is @Jeremiah24_, shared a video on the social media app of a real bat flying around the theater while "The Batman" was paused on the screen.

A spokesperson for Cinépolis confirmed to CBS on Sunday that the incident occurred in its Moviehouse & Eatery theater in Northwest Austin, On Friday, March 4.

Annelise Holyoak, the spokesperson, said: "Local animal control was immediately contacted, and they have been overseeing the situation to ensure guest, associate, and animal safety. To ensure a prank like this does not again occur, we've added additional security and are checking all bags upon guest entry."

Another audience member, who used the Twitter handle @sparty1211, also tweeted that employees at the theater tried to get the winged creature out themselves before animal control arrived.

In a video shared by the moviegoer, an employee says to the people in the room with the bat: "We will use the projector to turn [the movie screen] 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 spokesperson for Cinépolis said the majority of the audience members opted to stay and finish the movie with the bat in the room despite being offered full refunds.

"The Batman," Warner Bros' latest movie about the superhero, is out now. Robert Pattinson stars as the caped crusader in director Matt Reeves' iteration, interacting with notorious villains such as Catwoman, Riddler, and Penguin.