Jack Black Surprises L.A. Audience with \’Minecraft\’ Appearance: A Plea for No Popcorn Throwing

Leave your popcorn alone.

Jack Black gave this advice to audience members at a film showing.
A Minecraft Movie
Over the April 11-13 weekend at AMC Century City in Los Angeles, after several days of reports highlighting disruptive conduct from younger audience members who were throwing popcorn at others whenever Black’s character shouted, “chicken jockey!”

When Black slipped into the auditorium without warning, he at first altered his voice as he declared: \”For today\’s presentation of
A Minecraft Movie
Please refrain from tossing popcorn.” As soon as he started talking in his distinctive voice and was identified, the audience erupted into cheers as he brandished his primary prop from the film—an axe. “Check out what I’ve got here,” he announced, prompting whoops and shouts of approval.

During the film\’s debut weekend just a week prior, viral videos
captured audiences going wild
, tossing food and beverages, and damaging auditoriums. In an incident captured on video, someone was ejected for brandishing a live chicken. Certain cinemas are now giving warnings; Cinema United, which represents myriad theater owners worldwide, has issued optional guidelines via a memorandum. These include making “pre-screening announcements” and state that should the situation worsen, “local law enforcement may intervene.” (It’s worth noting—based on reports and videos from at least one cinema-goer—that police have reportedly been summoned before.)

After all,
A Minecraft Movie
has scored a major success at the box office, amassing $552 million in global ticket sales within just under two weeks, making it one of the most successful video game adaptations ever, unadjusted for inflation. In its second domestic weekend, it raked in $78.5 million, bringing its cumulative gross to $278.9 million domestically and $273.8 million internationally, totaling $552.6 million globally.

It arrived at an ideal moment for Warner Bros.’ film executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, who had faced criticism following a string of disappointments.
Minecraft
Produced and co-financed byLegendaryPictures, this movie stands as the highest-grossing release of the year so far and is very likely to be the first film of 2025 to surpass $1 billion in global box office receipts(Vertigo is acknowledgedas aproducer too).

Although theater staff members are displeased with the cleanup duties they must handle, numerous cinema owners, particularly those heading major chains, avoid issuing blanket bans on this behavior due to fears that such restrictions might escalate tensions further. According to industry insiders, similar cautions in the past haven’t necessarily proven beneficial for calming passionate fan bases.
Minions: The Rise of Gru
started tossing bananas during showings of the movie or, more recently, when theater chains such as AMC requested
Wicked
cinema attendees to avoid singing along with the film (subsequently during the movie\’s run, Universal organized sing-along showings).

For the uninitiated,
A Minecraft Movie
Follows four outcasts who get transported via a portal into a cube-shaped universe and have to set off on a journey back to reality, assisted by a skilled builder called Steve (Black). During their adventure, a baby zombie ends up riding a chicken, creating what’s known as a “chicken jockey” – an incredibly uncommon event within the game. This unexpected scene causes fans to burst into cheers and astonishment.

It’s clear Black was sent to AMC Century City with the aim of mitigating negative impacts and perhaps igniting a positive buzz that might stop people from throwing popcorn at the screen.

Are you prepared for some great music? Please get ready to be entertained, ladies and gentlemen.
A Minecraft Movie
Black remarked as he strolled through the crowded rows of the AMC Century City theater.