The force of nature shuts down 'The Last Jedi' at Hoover outdoor movie series
The Force was strong at Veterans Park in Hoover Friday night – the force of nature that is.
Lightning, thunder and rain canceled the showing of “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” which was supposed to be the first installment of the 2018 Free Friday Flicks summer outdoor movie series.
With threatening skies, the crowd already was slim, with only about 100 people milling around the pavilion at the park before organizers called off the show and encouraged people to leave the park just about the time the movie was supposed to start — at dusk.
Organizers said they would try to reschedule the Star Wars movie to a later date. The rain date for this year’s Free Friday Flicks series is July 27.
Clark and Cassie Whitaker of the nearby Inverness community were among those who showed up Friday night. They brought their daughter, Carsyn, and her cousin, Emma Waldrep from Decatur.
“We love “Star Wars,”” Cassie Whitaker said.
The Whitakers try to come to a couple of the free outdoor movies each year, depending on whether they are in town and what is showing, she said. Their daughter just likes to come and watch the movies outside and take part in the activities, such as the inflatable bounce house, she said.
Michael Horowitz of Vestavia Hills said he came to the Free Friday Flicks about four years ago with his kids and enjoyed it enough to come back this year with Ginger Randall of Sumiton.
“It’s nice to get outside and kick off the summer,” he said.
Qiao Lin, who lives in The Abbey at Inverness apartment complex, and Isha Nehwal of Chelsea said they came to the movies with their boys, ages, 3, 4 and 7, last year and had a great time.
“We love the park,” Lin said. “They (the boys) love the pizza, and they love the movies. They’ve got everything they enjoy.”
They love all the events that Hoover puts on at the park, including Free Friday Flicks in the summer, Celebrate Hoover Day in the spring and the Hoover Hayride and Family Night around Halloween, the women said.
Check out the rest of the schedule for the 2018 Free Friday Flicks summer outdoor movie series here.