Listening To Music On Their Phone During “Wicked,” And 17 Other Suuuuuper Rude Things People Did At The Movies
In light of the recent discourse surrounding singing in theaters during movie musicals (looking at you, Wicked), we asked BuzzFeed Community members to tell us about the rudest audience members they’ve ever encountered while at the movies. Unsurprisingly, their stories were absolutely bonkers and deeply infuriating. Here’s what people shared:
1. “Unfortunately, I vividly remember seeing a film and witnessing this revolting person audibly and physically passing wind. He would lift himself up off his seat, let loose a long toot, sit back down, then rinse, and repeat a few minutes later. It was absolutely disgusting and horrific. I left the cinema 15 minutes in, went to get a staff member to let them know what was going on, and then asked for my money back. I refused to go back into that cinema hall wafting with toxic fart air. Honestly, the audacity. He didn’t even try for subtlety.”
2. “Someone behind me put their feet on my armrest. They weren’t wearing shoes but had their socks on. I was on a first date with my new girlfriend. Since it was dark, I had no idea where the horrible stench was coming from. Being slightly paranoid, I thought my feet stunk until I realized it was the guy behind me. I embarrassed him in front of his friends when I told him to remove his feet because they stunk.”
—Anonymous
3. “I caught a matinee of Blink Twice in a mostly empty theater. About 20 minutes into the movie, a couple came in with their phone flashlights illuminated, crossing in front of the audience from the door to the right of the screen to the seats far to the left. The man kept his phone out, watched videos with the volume on, and texted with the keyboard sound effect activated, punctuating the movie with rapid ‘click click clicks.’ He argued with his girlfriend periodically. At the movie’s climax, he got loud, threatening to kick his girlfriend’s ass. At that point, I’d had enough, so I yelled, ‘Shut up!’ but I was low-key worried/hopeful he’d take that as an excuse to fight me. He did not and finally shut up after some more (loud) muttering.”
4. “I go to the movies almost weekly; unfortunately, this is becoming too common. Recently, during Gladiator II, a couple of girls next to me were swooning loudly over Mescal (and he’s in every scene, so it was the whole movie). Eventually, someone in front of them turned on their flashlight and shined it right at them. One of the girls had the gall to say, ‘Excuse me, I’m trying to enjoy the movie,’ and the guy with the light said, ‘So am I, but I can’t with you talking nonstop.’ After the movie, he apologized to the girls, and they just rolled their eyes at him and giggled until he left. Another time, someone ordered Wendy’s from Uber Eats, brought it in, and started loudly smacking on their burger and fries.”
5. “Last year, at a movie I was attending, someone started smoking marijuana in the middle of the theater. They waited until the lights went down and previews came on. You could see their lighter in the dark. I was a couple of rows back and could smell it. The theater staff came and asked them to leave. They made a huge scene, and the theater gave us free movie passes to make up for it.”
6. “The movie theater was about two-thirds full, and 15 minutes into the movie, a woman’s phone rang, and she answered it. We all assumed she’d speak briefly and hang up, then maybe turn off her phone. Instead, she talked loudly for over five minutes like she was alone while moviegoers began to grumble/whisper, hoping she’d end her call soon. She finally does. About two minutes later, it rang again, and she began another similar phone conversation. I’d had enough, so I called out, ‘Either hang up and turn it off or go out into the lobby!’ She looked shocked but did exit the auditorium. I got a brief round of applause, and we were able to watch the rest of the movie in peace!”
—Anonymous
7. “This was so long ago, I don’t even remember the movie. I just know it was a loud, violent movie, rated R. It was a late showing with few people in the audience. I was happy until a couple with a baby decided that with ALL the free space in the theater, they wanted to sit directly in front of my seat. A baby. In a loud, R-rated movie. Just as the movie started, they changed that baby’s extremely ripe diaper. I’ll never forget that smell. At least I was able to leave and get a refund.”
8. “One of the last movies I saw in theaters before COVID-19 was Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood on opening day. I sat by myself in the back, smack-dab in the middle, because I hit the early show. Another guy was alone at the end of the aisle nearest the exit stairs. This freaking guy. He kept standing up and moving around. I assumed maybe he had problems sitting too long. Tarantino movies are notoriously long; this was not lost on me. Then, he started texting. Now, he was on my left-hand side, maybe 10 seats away. He should’ve been easy to ignore, but this guy had a vendetta against this theater. Whenever his phone popped on, it was like a police searchlight in my peripheral. I was just trying to watch my movie, man. He was doing too much.”
“After the end credits and the lights flipped on, I saw he was gone. I walked through the most disgusting mess of popcorn, soda, candy boxes, candy wrappers, and napkins to get to the exit. He was one middle-aged man. How do people live with themselves?”
9. “I was at the movies on Saturday seeing Wicked, and someone sitting two rows in front of me was playing Tom Petty songs on their phone through most of the movie.”
10. “On Thanksgiving night, I saw Tombstone (1993) with my husband, brother, and sister-in-law. A man and two women were in front of us, very drunk and possibly high. They kept reaching over each other’s heads to slap one another, in between making out in various combinations, and were quite loud about it. My husband got the usher, who asked them to keep it down. When he left, they started being twice as loud. It got to the point that they stopped the movie and put up the lights. The man tried to punch my husband (bad idea; he was huge and trained to subdue men at the toughest jail in NYC), and the women tried to attack me. Cops were called. Fun night!”
11. “About halfway through the film I went to see, I heard ridiculously loud monkeys screeching. Some fool had given their kid their phone, and he was playing Temple Run on it with the volume up and the screen on full brightness.”
12. “A woman and her friend were seated behind me. She had seen the movie before and was giving her friend a play-by-play of every scene. I kept turning around and glaring at her, but she ignored me. I finally turned and shushed her loudly, and she gave me the dirtiest look. It worked, though.”
—Anonymous
13. “It was the opening night of a Spider-Man movie, and the theater was completely sold out. The woman beside me let her toddler stand in her lap and scream, ‘SPIDER-MAN!’ incessantly throughout the movie while waving a plastic Spidey around (which narrowly avoided hitting me about a thousand times). The only break was when she changed his diaper…right there in the seat next to me.”
14. “I went to see The Current War with Benedict Cumberbatch in theaters with my dad when I moved back home to Pennsylvania after living abroad. A man was sitting alone, talking into his phone before the previews. He was the only other person in the theater at that point. He then suddenly turned to us and aggressively yelled, ‘Hey! This is Pittsburgh’s history! Pay attention!’ Again, the lights were still on. I just glared and then ignored him. More people came in, and he was still talking loudly on his phone, recording himself. Finally, the previews came on, and he quieted down. As soon as the actual film began, though, he resumed recording himself, speaking louder than ever. I was looking forward to seeing the movie, and all I can remember is this guy talking into his phone and myself becoming more irritated. I am not confrontational, but my dad had to tell me no when I went to lay into this guy.”
—Anonymous
15. “I was at a screening of Happy Feet, and the movie starts with this whole dancing singing thing, and the girl a few seats from my left says very loudly to her friend, ‘It’s not real penguins?! My mother told me there were real penguins?’ Was that the end? No. This woman then proceeded to get out her phone and call her mother right then and there to ask why she said there were real dancing and singing penguins in this movie.”
—Anonymous
16. “Someone was clipping their nails in the theater. I wish I were joking. Also, if I go to a film aimed at an older audience, the people in my area seem to think that the screen is in their living room and will have loud and long conversations.”
17. “Back in the day, someone had a battery pack on their cell that lit up like a Christmas tree. After she took a second call in the middle of the movie, another patron LET HER HAVE IT. They said something to the effect of, ‘We’re all SOOOO glad you’re SOOOO important.’ It was a ridiculous and glorious time.”
18. And: “It’s not just one instance. After nine movies in a row, I finally gave up on going to the movies where I had to loudly tell people to shut up when they continued talking to each other like they were in their living room. Most of the time, when a loud voice booms out, ‘Shut up!’ in a theater, it works, but I shouldn’t have to do this EVERY TIME. One time, two guys beside me in a crowded premiere were doing a running Siskel and Ebert critique of the movie from the beginning. I figured it would taper off and die, but 10 minutes in, I had to lean over and remind them that I paid to see the film, not listen to their opinions of it.”
“The last time, I was in a nearly empty theater. One guy was way down front, two girls were in the best mid-house seats, and I was a few rows behind the girls. They chatted through the entire film, even after I asked them politely to keep it down. I’m not talking whispered comments, but a full-blown chat at normal volume. Since I’m a big dude and they were a couple of young girls, I decided not to shout or make a fuss and just tried to ignore them, but it was the final straw. I haven’t been to a theater since.”
—Anonymous
What’s the rudest thing you’ve ever seen or heard someone do in a movie theater? Tell us in the comments or share anonymously using this form.
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
