When out in public, there’s a certain expectation of civility. This includes both how you act and react to others.
Redditor Nashiwa couldn’t stand how some people were acting at a movie theater. So the original poster (OP) had an outburst.
OP’s friend thinks they were out of line, but OP thinks it was called for. To find out who was right, OP decided to ask the “Am I the A**hole” (AITA) about what had happened.
The outburst happened in the worst place for it.
“AITA for yelling at the movie theater?”
But OP claims they had a good reason.
“So last Sunday I was out with friends at the theater to watch the new Batman movie that came out recently (which I recommend, it was very enjoyable). We got in, sat down at our assigned seats and the movie started.”
“In front of us was a couple (in their thirties I would guess), and behind us on the right was a small group of teens / young adults (4-5 guys, probably around 18-20 years old).”
“During the first hour of the movie, these guys behind us were talking to each other and laughing without any consideration for the other people trying to enjoy the movie. A few people around them told them discreetly to stop talking, but they kept on going.”
“At that point I was starting to get annoyed, but I managed to ignore the noise and got back into the movie. But a few minutes after that, suddenly a bucket nearly full of popcorn flew over our heads, showering us in popcorn and hitting the lady sitting in front of us right in the head.”
“Looking at the trajectory of the bucket, it obviously came from that group of a**holes (they were the only ones sitting in that direction). The lady was obviously surprised and looked back, but then she turned around and didn’t say a thing.”
“I, on the other hand, was mad. I stood up and started unloading on these guys, giving them a piece of my mind and yelling at them.”
“I don’t know if they were too shocked that someone dared to call them out or if they didn’t care, but none of them said anything back to me. I sat back down and turned my attention back to the movie.”
“About 5 minutes later, security got into the room and these guys were escorted out.”
“After the movie was over, my friends told me that I had acted a bit like an AH because by yelling I disturbed the whole room, while these guys would have been kicked out anyway considering the theater had security cameras in the room.”
“And that the lady who got hit by the bucket was the one who should have said something and not me. Still, I was pissed at their behavior and I think they deserved to be called out. AITA?”
OP thinks someone had to stand up to the teenagers, since they were being so disruptive. However, their friend thinks it just disrupted things more, and they were going to be removed anyway.
Should OP have even bothered??
On Reddit, the users of the board judged OP for unloading on the group of teenagers by including one of the following in their response:
- NTA – Not the A**hole
- YTA – You’re the A**hole
- NAH – No A**holes Here
- ESH – Everybody Sucks Here
In the end the question isn’t about security coming to remove the teens. There’s no way OP could have predicted that.
The reason question is if OP was wrong to try and get the other group to stop disturbing anyone else. The talking was annoying, sure, but throwing popcorn is a step too far.
It was easy for the board to vote that OP was NTA.
“No EVERYBODY should have called out boorish rude and incosiderate behavior. You are in a theatre to watch a movie, not to witness these stupid teenage antics and be distracted from a movie you all paid money to see.”
“If the lady didnt want to say anything, that is her prerogative but OP was well in his right to speak up. NTA” – BeeYehWoo
“Second this. The loud noises were affecting everyone and not OP. Also personally, I dont think that security would have taken those guys out looking at the camera footage.”
“Its good that OP brought this to their attention, imo.”
“NTA” – LordP_496
“NTA. Thanks for standing up for that lady and the whole theater in general. Those kids deserved it.”
“I’ve seen someone literally let someone cut them in line at Costco and I stood up for them even though they didn’t stand up for themselves. I would have done the same.” – ReadingSad3238
“NTA”
“Trust me when I say this those guys weren’t kicked out because there were cameras in the room but because you yelled at them and security must have gotten to know about it.”
“I hate it when people create noise in the movie theatre. Don’t come and watch if you don’t even have the basic decency.”
“A few days ago I was watching a movie with my parents and this couple right behind us had a child with them. Obviously, the child was making noise but I ignored it.”
“After some time the mother started playing music on her phone to calm the child even while the movie was going on. I was so irritated and even gave them some mean looks.”
“The only reason I didn’t said anything was that I was with my parents.” – lily527
“You’re my hero! I HATE noisy people in cinemas! It ruins the film.”
“I am happy to tell people off but my partner hates it when I do. Feck them! Stfu or get out!”
“Well done – I for one would have shaken your hand and been glad that you stood up to them. Hopefully they won’t ever do that again. Especially as they got kicked out.” – millymollymel
“Nta. You paid to watch a movie. You deserve to watch the movie in peace.”
“I will say next time just go get a worker to deal with it before it escalates. I also understand you were pushed to your limit and reacted as such.” – Mortica_Fattams
“NTA.”
“On one hand they’re essentially still kids (legally might be adults but a baby adult) so dicking around is to be expected, but they should’ve stopped once someone said something the first time.”
“Everyone around them probably wanted to do the same thing but social grace told them to ignore it the best that they could.”
“Everyone in that theatre also paid to see the movie and should be able to see it without distraction from other people. You’re not an island, others around you are affected by your conversations, phone usage, and dicking around.”
“Reactionary stuff is fine (‘what the f***? Did you see that?’ ‘I knowwwww!’).but a conversation about your uncle bob’s pancakes has nothing to do with the movie.” – xaledonia
However, the sentiment was not unanimous. Some commenters pointed out that what OP did likely just increased the disruption.
An annoying group in a theater is one thing, but someone yelling back at them is another.
While the teens weren’t innocent, the commenters debated on the merits of OP’s actions.
“ESH. I’m slowly coming to the conclusion people no longer know how to behave in public.”
“I totally understand why you were upset but getting security would have been a better option.” – sweetdollette1999
“In that case he would have had to miss more of the movie while outside fetching them, and it would probably have been almost as distracting for the rest of the theatre having them come in and speak to the group as it was for him to do so.”
“I daresay everyone present benefited from them being silenced (and ultimately removed).” – benitoaramando
“ESH but you by only the tiniest bit. Yeah, you made the scene they were making worse by being louder and more disruptive than they were.”
“So while calling them out would normally be a good thing, it wasn’t necessary in this situation. You disturbed the entire theater by doing that.”
“Next time, just go and get security yourself and let the theater do its job. The employees don’t need the assist.” – What_Was_I_doi
“The minor disruption caused by OPs brief outburst doesn’t even enter into the equation IMO. The teens were being extremely rude and disruptive throughout the movie.”
“Throwing the popcorn tub and hitting someone with it, depending on the jurisdiction, escalated the situation to misdemeanor assault and battery. (You don’t need physical injury for it to be a crime.)”
“And why should OP have to leave the theater and potentially miss a big chunk of the movie, depending on how long it took to find an employee willing to deal with situation?”
“OP is definitely NTA, and the teens in question were not only AHs, but petty criminals at that.” – The-Aforementioned-W
While we can’t vouch for what OP did, it was at least nice that someone would stand up for the other movie goers. However, it may be better to find another option if this happens again.