The Covid-19 pandemic has provided powerful evidence for the irrepressibility of human sociability. Most people aren’t hermits. They not only enjoy company; they positively hunger for contact with family, friends, and even strangers. Despite the pandemic and despite restrictions from government health care officials, tens of millions around the world have risked their health to go to restaurants, bars, dance clubs, and even orgies. Earlier this week, right-wing Hungarian politician Jozsef Szajer, who had sponsored anti-LGBTQ laws in his native land, was caught participating in a 25-man sex party in Brussels—a scandal in Belgium because it violated Covid-19 protocols.
Despite rogue figures like Szajer, most people are maintaining Covid restrictions, which means that entertainment industries that rely on social gathering have suffered. The movie industry has been hit particularly hard because it faces competition from streaming services like Netflix, HBO Max (which started during the pandemic), and Disney+. With the rise of streaming and easy availability of high-quality home entertainment networks, it’s now possible for members of the middle class to replicate the moviegoing experience in their own homes—or at least a highly fragmented and individualistic version of that experience.
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