WATCH: Moose fills up on popcorn in Kenai theater

KENAI, Alaska (KTUU) - When a new patron stopped by the Kenai Cinemas on Wednesday night, he wasn’t interested in showings for “The Pope’s Exorcist,” “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” or “John Wick: Chapter 4.″

Instead, this visitor only wanted to indulge in one particular concession stand snack.

“Our popcorn had him enticed,” Kenai Cinemas General Manager Ricky Black said. “He was pretty focused on that. I guess he was tired of eating bark for the winter.”

A young moose entered the cinema around 9 p.m. and stayed for about five minutes, Black said. Surveillance video shows the moose sniffing around the concession stand before following his nose to a nearby tray of popcorn left by the trash can. The moose had his nose in a trash can, at one point getting his nose and mouth stuck inside a spent McDonald’s Happy Meal box.

“They were just letting some of the cold air in, and that’s how this happened,” said Black, whose niece was also working at the time. “We prop the door open quite often during this time of the year because it’s just so nice outside, and you want to let some of that fresh air in.”

Black and another employee were able to direct the moose to the exit. Black, who is from Arkansas, said the event was a cool thing to experience, especially as he and his niece Jasmynne are new to Alaska.

“We both think this is just so awesome,” he said, “because we’re both just kind of fascinated with moose in general. Like, we’re still in that new-to-Alaska phase.”

He said the situation would have been much different had an adult moose stopped by.

“I would not have the same reaction to a bull moose in rut season, or a mama moose,” Black said.

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