 |
|
 
|
|
|
HATC SAMPLE EDITION:
|
|
13th March, 2026
Seats empty at Magyar film screenings
Péter Magyar alleged Fidesz involvement after it emerged that screenings of the film Spring Wind, The Awakening – a sympathetic documentary about the Tisza Party leader – were sold out on Thursday, but many seats remained empty during the actual showings.
Andrea Buda, the PR and marketing director of the Cinema City chain, told Telex that morning and early afternoon screenings had quickly sold out, yet only about one-third of the seats were occupied in the theatres.
The controversy began after pro-government influencer Dániel Bohár posted photos suggesting cinemas were empty during screenings.
Magyar claimed that pro-government “propagandists” had bought large numbers of tickets in Budapest cinemas to create the impression that the film about him had low attendance.
According to Magyar, entire auditoriums were booked in advance, but only 30-40 people attended the screenings.
Cinema City said it does not check who purchases tickets nor which accounts are used.
Meanwhile, ticket sales later in the day showed mixed results across the Cinema City network, with some screenings nearly sold out and others only partly filled.
|
Sources regularly consulted, with abbreviations used in text: Népszabadság (N); Magyar Hírlap (MH); Világgazdaság (VG); Napi Gazdaság (NG); Magyar Nemzet (MN); Népszava (Nsz); Kossuth Rádió news (KR); nightly TV news (TV).
|
|
|
 Contact
Free Trial Subscription
|
|
