General - Earnings Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 26, 2020	Mar. 28, 2019
Numerator:
Net earnings (loss) attributable to The Marcus Corporation	$ (19,352)	$ 1,860
Denominator:
Denominator for basic EPS	30,975	29,883
Effect of dilutive employee stock options		616
Denominator for diluted EPS	30,975	30,499
Common Stock [Member]
Net earnings (loss) per share - basic:
Common Stock	$ (0.64)	$ 0.06
Net earnings (loss) per share - diluted:
Common Stock	(0.64)	0.06
Class B Common Stock [Member]
Net earnings (loss) per share - basic:
Common Stock	(0.58)	0.06
Net earnings (loss) per share - diluted:
Common Stock	$ (0.58)	$ 0.06