Estimated revenue of movie theaters in the U.S. 2010-2021, by source. In 2021, movie theaters across the United States collectively generated over nine billion U.S. dollars in revenue, of which 4.5 billion dollars alone came from ticket sales.
During the pandemic, the movie theater industry saw a decrease in profits. Because of mandated closes and fewer produced movies, people turned to other forms of entertainment, like streaming services. Out of the $80.8 billion earned in the film industry in 2020, movie theaters only made 15% of those profits.
The pandemic and the rise of the small screen have created a financial challenge for the entire movie theater industry. Although ticket sales were up in 2023 over 2022 (825M versus 813M), they are still falling short of the 1.2B sold in 2019, according to Statista.
Overall, the future of the movie theater industry in the US remains uncertain, but there is hope that it will recover as the pandemic subsides and marketing and quality improves.
After a long period of low theater attendance, in 2023 the cinemas saw the return of grand audiences, with films such as “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” Undoubtedly, these releases exemplified that theaters can be one of the most unifying places in the world where many can find themselves alongside people they may have ...
Cinema attendance has been challenged over the past decade as more and more titles have become accessible for at-home viewing. On top of this, in many markets around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic halted film production, temporarily closed movie theatres and delayed new releases.
Global box office revenue is predicted to hit $32 billion in 2024, according to film analytics firm Gower Street, which is nowhere near the $40-billion-plus heights of the pre-COVID-19 era.
The global theater market, encompassing both movie theaters and live performances, reached a staggering USD 180.2 billion in 2023, and is projected to reach USD 221.3 billion by 2028, reflecting a healthy CAGR of 5.4%.
What is the outlook for the movie theater industry?
Revenue in the Cinema market is projected to reach US$85.16bn in 2024. Revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2024-2029) of 5.14%, resulting in a projected market volume of US$109.40bn by 2029.
As long as high-budget and highly-anticipated movies continue to be made and first projected in large, franchised theatres, movie theatres will not become obsolete. Yet, the success of smaller, unfranchised theatres may not fare as well in the competition with streaming sites.
In recent years, there has been a surge in movie ticket pricing, which has been turning people off. Additionally, movies hit streaming services and digital weeks after films are released in theaters, barely giving these movies room to breathe.
The adults who reported seeing a musical theater production fell from about 17 percent to 10 percent; the number for nonmusical plays dropped from about 9 percent to 5 percent. Attendance for ballet, opera and classical music performances saw similarly dramatic decreases.
Bloomberg's Jonathan Levin even posits that whilst it may appear as a 'cinema boom', it's certainly nothing more than a normalisation after the pandemic disruptions. Considering cinemas were struggling even before the pandemic, it remains an uphill battle for theatres.
The net loss at the giant cinema chain came in at $163.5 million, which shrank a year-earlier loss of $235.5 million. And the diluted loss per-share was 62 cents, against a year-earlier loss per-share of $1.71.
Over half of respondents, 55%, said they are more interested in watching movies at home, 50% said it's too expensive to see movies in theaters and 32% said they aren't interested in the movies playing in theaters are major reasons why they don't go to theaters.
The majority of income is from screening new release films and selling confectionery, food, and popcorn to the audiences who attend. A hit film results in high ticket income and high concession sales. There is little a cinema can do if there is a poor run of film releases.
As movie theaters specialize in either blockbusters or niche indie experiences, the likelihood is the future of cinema will see a lot more movies being released via digital, direct-to-consumer distribution. For both studios and streaming services, the most important challenge is figuring out how to sustain a profit.
During the last eight recessions, box office sales grew six-fold. We may earn a commission from links on this page. US box office sales recovered to 2019 levels this past week, meaning that moviegoing has officially recovered from its pandemic slump.
Is It Profitable to Own a Movie Theater? Yes, it can be very profitable to own and operate a movie theater. This business model can generate upward to $50,000 per year, even as a new business. To reach ample success and profits, the theater must be in a great location, have comfortable seating, and great menu items.
Cinemas derive their income from several sources, the most important being: Ticket sales (and membership income if applicable) Food, drink and merchandising sales. Advertising revenue (screen and brochure)
the cinemas outright keep 50% of ticket sales (after subtracting the house nut) it works in a sliding scale that drops week-on-week (i.e 80% goes to distributor and 20% goes to cinema in week 1, 75% goes to the distributor and 25% goes to the cinema on week 2, etc).
Blockbusters and all-time industry hits are the most successful films in terms of box office collections and audience reception, and they can stay in theaters for an extended period of 8-10 weeks. These films often create a buzz even before their release, and the audience eagerly anticipates their theatrical run.
In most cases, movie theaters are no longer using the traditional film format for showing movies. Since the early 2000s, digital projectors have been the industry standard around the world. As movie projection technology advances, older methods such as film slowly become more and more obsolete.
The average theatrical window for films released from May through June will end up more than 40 days — a significant increase compared to January-April, when the theatrical window fell to an average of 30 days.
