- National Cinema Day will take place on September 3.
- Over 3,000 theaters in the US will participate and offer tickets at no more than $3.
As movie theaters face a drought, they are hoping a new event - and cheap tickets - will boost attendance and lure crowds.
National Cinema Day is Saturday, September 3, the Cinema Foundation, which is the National Association of Theatre Owners' nonprofit, announced on Sunday.
For one day only, more than 3,000 movie theaters across the US will offer a ticket to any movie or screening for $3 or less. There are around 40,700 movie screens in the US, and at least 30,000 of them will be participating.
The day — during Labor Day weekend — is typically slow at movie theaters and is expected to be especially slow this year, as the only major release that weekend is a re-release: an extended version of "Spider-Man: No Way Home."
It reflects the lack of major movies in theaters after a promising summer; the next surefire hit likely isn't until "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" in November.
Coming into Labor Day weekend, more under-the-radar recent releases will still be in theaters, like the Brad Pitt action movie "Bullet Train."
"It's about getting moviegoers back into cinemas at a typical slow time for moviegoing," John Fithian, head of the theatre association, told Insider.
It's also about promoting upcoming movies, Fithian said, as theaters show previews of what's ahead.
While the remainder of the year lacks tentpole releases — save for "Black Adam," "Wakanda Forever," and Avatar: The Way of Water" — theater owners are hoping they can highlight lesser known movies.
The thriller "Don't Worry Darling," the historical epic "The Woman King," the romantic comedy "Bros," and others also will be released later this year.
"August and September is typically a slow time," Fithian said. "But people miss that there are good movies coming out in the fall. We have a lot of good stuff coming."