Violent Incidents in Movie Theaters

In Oakland, California, a group of teenagers and young adults were outside, waiting in line for this film, when an unidentified person, after apparently getting into an argument with someone in the crowd, fired randomly at the crowd, and then ran away. 5 people were hit, but nobody died. The perpetrator was never found.

A rumble occurred at a drive-in screening of this film, which involved a man being shot in the hand and another in the neck. Both men lived.

At a screening in Albuquerque, New Mexico a man accidentally dropped his revolver, it went off and struck a woman in the heel. She was taken to the hospital and survived her injury, and he was arrested.

All across America, many places where screenings were held became victim to violent attacks, which led to 1 death in Chicago, a 23 year old man who was shot to death, and 33 injuries, including a 15 year old boy who was stabbed in the parking lot by 11 men.

Several men representing two different gangs engaged in a brawl just outside of the theater, after a screening of this film. 13 of the 14 fighters were arrested, and there were no reported or serious injuries.

At a screening of this film on Christmas Day, a moviegoer shot a man in the back for talking too loudly during the film, and the shooter had also thrown popcorn at the man's young son prior to this. The victim survived and the shooter was arrested for attempted murder, aggravated assault, and weapons violation.

During a midnight screening of this film in Aurora, Colorado, James Holmes opened fire at the crowd, killing 12 people, and injuring 70 others. He had also set up a bomb at his apartment, hoping it would go off, but it did not. He was arrested and found guilty of murder, and was sentenced to 12 life sentences without parole and an additional 3,318 years in prison.

During a screening of this film on Christmas Day in Long Island, New York, two rival gangs began shooting at each other in the theater, and four non-participating people were hit, including the only fatality, a 15 year old boy. Four men were charged and arrested for the incident.

A retired police officer shot and killed a man following an intense argument after the man texted his daughter right before the movie was set to start in a theater in Florida. The ex-officer claimed that the man was about to attack him, and he defended himself, using the "State your ground" law in Florida as his defense. He is currently still awaiting trial, as the court is apparently waiting for crime lab enhancements of a security video in the theater that might have captured the incident.

A man armed with a gun and hatchet opened fire at a screening of this film in Nashville, Tennessee, but hit no one. He also pepper-sprayed some moviegoers, but nobody was taken to the hospital. He was shot and killed by the SWAT team, after exchanging gunfire.

A group of teenagers thought that a man had looked at them funny while they were standing in line in the concessions stand. They waited outside the theater, and after the film was over, they stabbed the man and his friends, killing him and injuring them, at a theater in Queens, New York. The one who did the stabbing was sentenced as a juvenile to 15 years to life in prison.

A security guard stabbed a 16 year old boy in the stomach who refused to leave the theater with a folding knife. The boy survived, and the guard was charged with second-degree assault.

The film had been subject to many violent attacks in or around theaters. A 19 year old guy was killed while waiting in line to buy a ticket. One Los Angeles Theater accidentally overbooked a screening of this film, which led to 1500 people rioting in the streets, which led to 9 arrests. Warner Bros. provided theaters with extra security following this incident.

At ComicCon San Diego 2010, while waiting for a Q&A in a theater for Seth Rogen about this film, two men began arguing over the space in between the seats, which escalated until one of the men stabbed the other in the eye with a pen. The victim went to the hospital with only a minor injury, whilst the stabber was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon.

A woman was shot in the back after a man claimed that he wanted to "test God and protect the Jews," and shot her during a scene in which Nazis track down Jews in a ghetto and kill them. The woman lived, and he was sentenced to six years in prison.

During a screening for this film, a man complained that the woman sitting near him was on her cell phone. The woman, and the two men she was with, left. Shortly afterwards, the two men returned and stabbed the man in the neck with a meat thermometer. The man was sent to the hospital with a serious brain injury and was in a comatose state, but did manage to survive. One of the men was eventually caught and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

At a screening for this film in Orange Country, California, a man approached the two other patrons in the theater, and during a scene that included a graphic stabbing, stabbed them both with a double edged knife, one in the arm, and the other in the chest and lung. Both men survived, and the stabber was arrested a week later and sentenced to life in prison.

A man walked into a theater during a screening of this film, and opened fire into the crowd, killing two people and injuring nine others. He then committed suicide, before the cops arrived.

Three separate instances of gang violence were initiated either in or just outside the theater, which left three people dead, in only two weeks. Theaters were also subject to rampant vandalism. Following these attacks, Paramount gave theaters the option to cancel their screenings. Those that didn't beefed up security. No other incidents were reported after that.

A man shot and killed himself while sitting in the back row, during a screening of this film in Oregon. Nobody else was hurt during the incident.

At a screening for this film in Baltimore, Maryland, a man sat behind another man he apparently picked at random and shot him in the back of the head, killing him. He told the remaining 4 members of the audience to lay down on the ground, where he then went to lobby, handed a gun to a theater manager, and admitted that he had just killed someone. He was found not criminally responsible for his actions due to his schizophrenia, and was committed to a psychiatric facility.