Dutch cinema chain Pathé plans to hypnotize 30 film fans so they forget a favorite movie and watch it fresh. The experiment lands as Netflix outearns the entire North American box office.
The stunt is small. The pressure behind it is not. Netflix made more than twice the region’s ticket sales in 2025, leaving operators such as AMC Entertainment fighting for every visit.
Can Hypnosis Recreate a First Viewing?
The event, called Pathé REWIND, is set for November 9 at Pathé Buitenhof in The Hague.
Participants pick from The Matrix, Se7en, La La Land, and Interstellar, according to Pathé’s announcement.
Hypnotherapist Victor Kraemer, a hypnosis specialist for over 30 years, first guides each fan through an online session. Right before the screening, the group goes under hypnosis again.
Pathé’s announcement does not mention Netflix or box office trends. Instead, the chain says it wants to test whether the magic of a first viewing can be relived.
However, Pathé has not explained how it will check whether anyone truly forgot the plot.
How Did Netflix Overtake the North American Box Office?
Pathé’s hypnosis gimmick fits a broader push by cinemas to offer nights that streaming cannot recreate at home.
In 2019, the US and Canadian box office brought in $11.36 billion. Netflix earned slightly less in the same region, at $10.05 billion, company filings and Box Office Mojo data show.
By 2025, the picture had flipped. Netflix’s regional revenue nearly doubled to $19.96 billion, while box office receipts fell to $8.66 billion.
AMC has since recovered some ground, reporting second-quarter revenue of $1.59 billion, up 14% year over year.
Meanwhile, Netflix shares hit a 26-month low in October despite record revenue. That makes AMC’s third-quarter report on November 4 a fresh read for shareholders on whether the theater rebound holds.
For now, cinema hypnosis remains a one-night test for 30 people. AMC has courted crypto fans before, adding Bitcoin payments for tickets and expanding to Dogecoin payment options.
The chain also became a favorite of retail traders during the 2021 meme stock rally. Its shares jumped 15% in premarket trading in September amid a row over stock tokens.
Whether such extras can narrow an $11 billion gap between Netflix and the box office remains the bigger question for AMC shareholders.
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