Woman maces man who asks her to turn off her cell phone in a movie theater

Woman maces man who asks her to turn off her cell phone in a movie theater
(Image credit: iStock)

Movie theater etiquette is a contentious issue, but some take it farther than others — like the woman who responded to a man's complaints about her cell phone by spraying his eyes with mace.

The incident took place on Monday night at an AFI Festival screening of Mike Leigh's Mr. Turner, reports Variety. Five minutes into the movie, the man repeatedly asked a woman seated in front of him to turn off her cell phone, eventually tapping her on the shoulder. After a "brief exchange" — during which the woman "turned on her phone's flashlight app, screamed at the man and threatened to call the police" — she reached into her purse, retrieved a can of mace, and sprayed him in the face.

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Scott Meslow

Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.