By David Topping

Photo by tapesonthefloor from the Torontoist Flickr Pool.

So, are there bedbugs camping out for TIFF at the Scotiabank Theatre? According to owners Cineplex Entertainment, who conducted a “thorough investigation overnight” on Monday, no.
At 10:15 a.m. on Tuesday, the company issued this statement, passed to Torontoist by Global News:

Late yesterday afternoon, Cineplex contracted the services of Abell Pest Control Inc., (Abell), who are experts in their field, to investigate a claim made by a theatre guest that they had been bitten by bed bugs and believed it had occurred while they were watching a movie at our Scotiabank Theatre Toronto. After a thorough investigation overnight, which involved a specially trained sniffing dog and a secondary visual inspection, Abell has confirmed that there were no bed bugs located within the Scotiabank Theatre.

“At Cineplex, the safety and security of our guests and staff are our number one concern which is why we took this claim very seriously and acted immediately,” said Pat Marshall, Vice President Communications and Investor Relations. “Recent media coverage related to two New York City theatres has caused a flurry of media calls and guest enquiries and unfortunately has lead many people to jump to erroneous conclusions. However, we took the matter seriously and fully investigated it.”

Cineplex is committed to providing the best out of home entertainment experience possible for our guests and their safety and security is our number one priority.