It wasn’t good, but it could have been worse. The movie industry can breathe a collective sigh of relief as 2024 comes to a close, given the lingering effects of last year’s Hollywood worker strikes, the relative lack of blockbusters, and the dismal box office in the first half of this year. It’s on.
This year’s box office revenue could reach a combined $8.75 billion in the U.S. and Canada, according to estimates from data firm ComScore. This figure means that box office revenue will be approximately 3% lower than in 2023. Even more disappointing for theaters is that they are down about 23% compared to 2019.
But consider that just six months ago, before Pixar’s Inside Head 2 hit theaters in June, revenues were down 27.5% after a slump and a series of high-profile debacles. These numbers represent a surprising turnaround.
“It’s been a different year than any other because we didn’t have a traditional roadmap to follow throughout the calendar,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at ComScore. “The fact that we’re here shows that audiences love going to the movies, but there has to be a path to follow to get there.”
While 2024 has brought unique challenges for the movie business, moviegoing still faces many hurdles accelerated by the pandemic.
People who once went to movies on a regular basis are no longer paying the same price to watch movies in theaters, but instead waiting until their favorite movies are released on premium digital rental or streaming platforms. Movies are only shown for a short period of time, so by the time casual moviegoers decide to watch the movie, the movie has often finished showing.
Last year’s strike by Hollywood writers and actors also resulted in the release of many films being pushed back to 2024 due to production delays and the need for extended marketing periods. That meant there weren’t as many wide releases for movie fans to get excited about.
According to data from the National Film Association, as of December 18, 95 films had been released domestically this year in 2,000 theaters. of the theater owners industry association. This pales in comparison to 2023 (101 books). Next year is expected to be even better, with 110 wide-format movies scheduled to be released.
Sean Gamble, CEO of Cinemark, a Plano, Texas-based movie theater chain, said, “Earlier this year, there was concern about what impact it would have after last year’s strike.” I think it’s clear that there was.” . “The big thing we continue to look at is what the timing of the volume will be and where the volume will be fully filled over the next few years.”
The light release schedule, coupled with bombshell projects at the beginning of the year such as Warner Bros. Pictures’ Furiosa: A Mad Max Story and Universal Pictures’ The Fall Guys, left industry insiders feeling a sense of finality for the film. I held But a string of hits throughout the summer and holiday season has given it a second wind.
Tony Chambers, head of theatrical distribution at Walt Disney Studios, said of the industry’s progress: “We ended the year in a better position than we started the year.” “Part of that is that these summer titles performed well.”
Animation was the big winner of the year, grossing more than $2 billion, a quarter of the annual domestic box office, and the highest percentage ever for the genre. Summer films such as Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment’s Despicable Me 4 and Pixar’s Inside Head 2 are ahead of Pixar’s Despicable Me, which was the highest-grossing film of the year with approximately $1.7 billion at the global box office. Families flocked to theaters in droves to see Inside Head 2. A few months later, Disney’s “Moana 2” helped dominate the Thanksgiving weekend box office.
This year’s animated films brought in more than $5 billion in box office revenue worldwide, according to ComScore. Analysts credit family films, and more broadly PG-rated films such as Universal’s “Wicked,” for boosting this year’s box office. Not only did these films resonate with their target audience of families, but they also featured well-known and beloved characters, alleviating the fears of families wondering whether going to the theater was worth it. Masu.
While animated movies were the clear winners this summer, some superheroes also played their part. Marvel Studios’ latest film, Deadpool & Wolverine, grossed $1.3 billion worldwide, boosting the Disney-owned studio’s prospects after a string of lackluster films. The film also proved that House of Mouse was largely family-friendly and that there was a niche for R-rated and irreverent storylines within the PG-13 world of superheroes.
The summer may have been boosted by blockbusters, but Osgood Perkins’ original indie film Longlegs also contributed to the box office momentum. The blockbuster horror film starring Nicolas Cage handed independent distributor Neon its biggest opening ever, $22 million, and came to fruition after a massive and mysterious marketing campaign.
As summer turned to fall, hits followed, including Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II, and the much-hyped Wicked. Cinemark’s Gamble said the continued momentum confirms there is still demand for theatrical movies.
At a recent meeting with studio executives in Los Angeles, he said a common topic was what this year’s box office numbers mean for the health of the theatrical box office.
“Everyone is looking at this year’s overall results as very positive,” Gamble said. “What we continue to see are examples that suggest that enthusiasm for moviegoing remains very strong.”
Disney has had a particularly strong year, with three of the top five films of 2024, “Inside Head 2” and “Deadpool & Wolverine,” topping the $2 billion mark at the domestic box office, with each The film made a record $1 billion worldwide. “Moana 2” is a box office success and has currently grossed approximately $821 million worldwide. This will give the Burbank media and entertainment giant about 25% of this year’s box office revenue.
“This year’s success shows that audiences are hungry for the ultimate experience of being in a theater and watching great movies with a crowd of people who are enjoying it as much as they are,” said Co-Chairman. Alan Bergman says. Disney Entertainment said in a statement:
While blockbusters filled theater seats this year, there were also plenty of flops.
Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola’s massive $120 million passion project, “Megalopolis,” hit a tough wall at the box office, grossing just $4 million in its opening weekend and a worldwide hit. It grossed less than $14 million at the box office. A loosely Roman-themed fable about an architect set in a futuristic New York, the film was anathema to major studios, and Coppola took on much of the financial risk himself.
Kevin Costner’s Western blockbuster “Horizons: Chapter 1” suffered a similar fate, grossing just $38 million worldwide as the “Yellowstone” actor used his own money to finance the film. The box office revenue was limited to . The film was the first in a planned four-part story. Due to the reception of the first film, the sequel was canceled from its scheduled August theatrical release.
Despite the success of Deadpool and Wolverine, other superhero films such as Madame Web and Kraven the Hunter from Sony Pictures and Kraven the Hunter from Warner Bros. It did not do well in its theatrical release. “Joker: Folie à Deux” is a musical based on the comic book sequel. Eli Roth’s video game adaptation “Borderlands” also failed to connect with audiences, as did Lionsgate’s reboot of the horror movie “The Crow.”
Still, film industry executives and analysts say they feel hopeful about 2025. It’s a year in which the effects of strikes and the pandemic are further in the rearview mirror, and the pace of films approaches normal.
Industry leaders said business should return to its pre-pandemic and strike trajectory in 2025. Next year’s slate includes superhero films (Captain America: A Brave New World, Thunderbolts and the new DC reboot Superman) and action films (Mission: Impossible: The Last Judgment). ”, “Jurassic World: Rebirth”). ), as well as sequels to popular movies (Now You See Me 3, Zootopia 2, Wicked: For Good).
The success and dependence of sequels and reboots will also force future calculations of new stories.
Although original films such as A24’s “Civil War,” Amazon MGM Studios’ “Challengers,” and “Long Legs” have been box office successes, none of the top 10 highest-grossing films of the year, both domestically and internationally, It was either a sequel or a movie based on an existing movie. Stories (this includes “Wicked,” an adaptation of a 21-year-old Broadway play and a revised version of the classic “Wizard of Oz”);
“Maybe what studios and exhibitions and the industry need to focus on is how to carve out original content,” Chambers of Disney said. “Whether we can cut through the original titles, that’s going to be the challenge.”
