A mum was left fuming after her son was turned away from a screening of Minions: The Rise of Gru because one of his pals was wearing a shirt.
Clare Harrison, 52, had planned on taking her 12-year-old son Charlie and four of his friends to go and see the film on Saturday 2 July.
However, the whole group were turned away from the Odeon Cinema on James Street West in Bath, Somerset, because one of the boys was wearing a shirt for the occasion.
Advert
Some cinemas have imposed a dress code for viewings of the flick, after a TikTok trend which involved large groups of boys going in suits and branding themselves ‘gentleminions’.
While the move appears to have the backing of Universal Studios - that tweeted to say: "To everyone showing up to @Minions in suits: we see you and we love you", some cinemas say the groups have become disruptive and have put blocks on the idea.
Clare said the experience was 'bizarre' and Odeon should have given parents notice about the ban.
Advert
She said: "I was just so cross. It's ridiculous really. I dropped them off at the door of the cinema, and then Charlie rang me not long after saying that they'd been kicked out.
"He explained that they'd walked in and been told they couldn't see the film because one of them was in a shirt.
"I'd not heard anything about this TikTok trend. He had mentioned that he wanted to wear a suit to me. He didn't own one so he didn't - though one friend wore a shirt.
Advert
"It was just stupid because there was no warning. There was no sign, even though you'd think they'd have one to cover their backs, nor anything on their website."
After being told to leave, Charlie and his friends tried to cover up their friend's shirt with a jumper but were again denied because staff could see 'a bit of shirt hanging out'.
Clare added: "The boys were only 11 to 12 years old. To not even give them a chance to come in was just stupid and unnecessary.
"A group of older lads turned up who weren't in suits, and the security guards warned them that if they caused trouble they'd remove them.
Advert
"So I was just perplexed at why they didn't just say the same to young kids in shirts like my son's friend who just wanted to see the film and not cause trouble.
"If they'd been disruptive and called me to say they'd been kicked out, I wouldn't have minded, but they weren't even allowed in."
Odeon Bath said it imposed the ban after an incident on Friday night (1 July) involving a group of boys in suits disrupting the screening.
An Odeon spokesperson responded to the incident saying: "Due to a small number of incidents in our cinemas over the weekend we have had to restrict access in some circumstances."
Topics: UK News, TV and Film
Claire Reid