Billionaire who bet big on cinemas stung by theater shutdown

A SEMBLANCE of normal life is slowly returning to China. People are heading to work, visiting malls, and even shopping at the wet markets that were among the places where coronavirus was first identified. But one gathering place remains closed: the cinema.

With movie theaters shuttered worldwide, it’s an early and ominous sign of the difficulties the industry will face even after the lockdowns lift. An enclosed space accommodating hundreds of patrons is ill-suited to the social-distancing requirements that are likely to remain in place for months.