Hollywood's Next Move: 4-D

Hollywood needs to get people back in theaters, so it's about to add a new dimension—think 4-D, instead of 3-D. Get ready to be enveloped in fog, smell scents, and feel your seat rumble while in the theater, reports the Los Angeles Times. The big push is coming from Asia's CJ Group, which is working with a US chain to have 200 4-D theaters in the country in the next five years. Whatever you're paying now to go to a movie, expect to add another $8 for the new effects.

That may sound steep, but the experiment is working well at theaters in South Korea, Thailand, and Mexico. Movie studios are on board, and they swear they'll work to avoid what one programmer calls "sensory overload" and to improve upon gimmicky features of yore such as "Smell-O-Vision." The LAT provides some examples of the 4-D technique: In Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, seats rocked back and forth to simulate boat movement during an attack; later, moviegoers got sprayed with water. (More movies stories.)