Two Cineplex auditoriums closed to investigate bedbug claims

Bedbugs found inside auditorium in Edmonton A Cineplex auditorium in northeast Edmonton is closed for the weekend after bedbugs were found crawling around a seat Friday night.

Two movie auditoriums were closed at a Cinema City Movies 12 location in northeast Edmonton while exterminators investigated the presence of bedbugs.

A video posted on Facebook showing a bug crawling across a theatre seat was reportedly shot at the low-cost theatre complex Friday night.

Following a complaint, a spokesperson for Cineplex said the auditoriums were closed to the public and a third-party exterminating team was called in to investigate.

“We didn't wait for the video to be out there,” said Cineplex VP of Communications Pat Marshall. “We didn't know that they were going to post a video. We responded immediately to the guests when they spoke to the manager at the theatre.”

Marshall went on to say “we brought in the experts, and we asked them to do a thorough review and they did and they found no activity,” Marshall said.

The remaining 10 auditoriums were open Saturday to the public. The two auditoriums being investigated remain closed through the weekend.

Correction: The initial story suggested that bedbugs were found inside two auditoriums, bedbugs were not confirmed inside the theatres. We apologize for the error.