Unsurprisingly, fan behavior at Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour is becoming a problem following the film’s release on October 13. This issue was anticipated after Taylor Swift urged her fans to treat the film like an actual concert and harness their main character energy. While this might have been an exciting idea for those who wanted the whole tour experience, some fans immediately began pleading with their cohort not to take Swift’s encouragement too seriously.
Not everyone was enchanted by the idea of sitting for three hours in a movie theater with fellow moviegoers screaming the lyrics to every song, drowning out the film audio, running around the theater, and blocking the screen. Theater employees were also dreading the potential mess theater-goers would leave behind if fans took Swift’s encouragement to heart. It goes without saying that a movie theater is very different from a massive concert stadium, and both come with very different rules of etiquette. The sound in a theater is nowhere near loud enough for people to be singing along at the top of their lungs, and there’s little room to get up and dance, do flips, and run around without getting in someone else’s way.
Now that Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour has premiered, reactions are flowing in online. While many describe it as a magical experience, complaints about unruly fan behavior at theaters have also arisen. Additionally, some very cringey videos depicting poor fan behavior have gone viral and are dissuading some from even venturing to the theater.
Are fans going too far at Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour?
It didn’t take long for several clips to surface online of Swift fans getting a little carried away at Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour. In one viral video, featuring a “crowd of broken Swifties in cinemas,” a group of moviegoers can be seen at the front of the theater, jumping, dancing, dropping to the floor, and singing at the top of their lungs.
Similar videos have surfaced with users warning moviegoers that they’re not going to a movie but to a concert with a “rabid fan base.” Other videos have shown Swifties lying on the theater floor while singing at the top of their lungs or imagined theater workers’ reactions to the aftermath of Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour.
The clips have sparked debate online about appropriate behavior during the film. Some don’t see an issue with people wholeheartedly enjoying the experience. However, others feel the behavior is inappropriate for a movie theater; some moviegoers are there because they want to hear Swift, not a bunch of fans screaming the lyrics to Swift’s songs. Additionally, while movie theaters were encouraging singing and dancing from one’s seat, many are laying out tips and rules, asking audiences not to scream, dance, and block people from seeing the screen. Yet the videos show that these rules are largely being ignored.
Meanwhile, even those upset by fans’ behavior at theaters revealed they are willing to compromise. They’re okay with singing and dancing, but other behaviors are unacceptable.
One user was concerned about taking their autistic toddler to the theater. Replying to a post on X, the user expressed disappointment; they thought it was agreed upon that sitting and singing was the way to approach Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour to make it safe and enjoyable for everyone. Others suggested that the film should have two separate showings, a quiet one for parents to bring their children to and one in which Swift fans can get loud. In fact, some theaters have a history of programming “rowdy screenings” for certain movies and concert films where this behavior is welcomed and even encouraged. This approach would be helpful to implement for The Eras Tour.
These users remind us that many of Swift’s fans are very young. Some parents may have been looking forward to giving their Swiftie kids a less intense Eras experience in a theater. The idea of a toned-down concert experience is appealing to moviegoers for several reasons, whether it’s because they have young children, are neurodivergent, or just dislike crowds. Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour isn’t just for people who want to experience Swift’s concert, but also for people who specifically want to experience it in theaters because that setting feels safer and more comfortable for them. (It’s also vastly more affordable.) The stadium experience and theater experience should be separate, allowing people to choose what works best for them.
There’s nothing wrong with singing, dancing, and having some fun. However, Swift fans need to ensure that they’re not forcing a stadium experience in an environment not suitable for it, or on people who would rather avoid it.
(featured image: David Eulitt, Getty Images)
