Fifty Shanks of Grey: Violence in the Movie Theater

Horrible Film Inspires Violence at Theater

Reportedly on Saturday, February 14 at 8pm in Glasgow, Scotland, three women were arrested in connection with an attack on a male patron in a theater auditorium showing the film Fifty Shades of Grey. Although Scotland Police dismissed claims of a violent attack, several witnesses claimed one of the women smashed her drinking glass over the male’s head after being asked to keep quiet. One witness claimed the bloody seat was hastily cleaned up by staff before the next screening. In the same theater, numerous complaints were made concerning patrons reportedly so intoxicated they were vomiting in the aisles, rivaling the en-masse customer regurgitation provoked in 1973 by screenings of The Exorcist. In an ironic twist of life imitating art, the three women were led out of the theater in handcuffs by Scotland Police. While nowhere near level of violence that took place during the midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises and considered by police and theater employees to be an isolated incident, Fifty Shades of Grey has managed to provoke extreme reactions and unruly behavior from moviegoers in addition to shattering February box office records. As of current, it has raked in $240 million globally and continues to climb.

- Andrew Kotwicki