Is The Cinema Making A Comeback?

Scenes from "A Minecraft Movie" (left) and "Sinners."Like many aspects of life in our post-pandemic world, cinemas have yet to return to how they used to be. Audience attendance has been inconsistent, and buzzy blockbusters are few and far between. Not to mention, swift digital releases have made it incredibly convenient to watch films from the comfort of our own homes.Five years after COVID-19 shut down much of the world, cinemas have struggled to generate enough excitement to get audiences back into seats. That is, until two big-screen juggernauts turned the tide last month.At the top of April, “A Minecraft Movie” delivered the first undeniable box-office smash of the year, opening to $313 million globally. Two weeks later, Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” enjoyed a solid $63 million global debut, stirred mainly by the director’s viral push for an IMAX viewing experience that audiences gladly embraced. Ticket sales for the horror flick have surpassed the $100 million mark worldwide, and demand remains so high that the movie has just scheduled an IMAX 70mm re-release in select theatres from May 15 to May 21.“Audiences have spoken and we listened,” Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. Pictures’ president of global distribution, said in a statement on Thursday. “If ever a film needed to be experienced in this incredible larger-than-life format, it’s ‘Sinners.’ Ryan has delivered a film that has been embraced by fans who appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into creating a film for this screen-filling format, and we wanted to give everyone the opportunity to see it — or see it again — in 70mm Imax.”If the numbers are any indication, audiences are once again eager to embrace the movie theatre experience, provided a film gives them a compelling reason to leave their couches. Especially amid inflation, consumers are already spending enough on streaming services. Studios like Warner Bros. are riding high on the renewed enthusiasm right now, but will this wave of excitement last through the year?That’s certainly the hope, with hyped May releases like Marvel’s “Thunderbolts,” “Final Destination: Bloodlines,” the live-action “Lilo & Stitch” and Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning.” There’s also the live-action “How to Train Your Dragon,” “F1,” “M3GAN 2.0,” “Jurassic World: Rebirth” and the highly anticipated “I Know What You Did Last Summer” sequel all releasing this summer. If even a handful of these films successfully deliver at the box office, it could signal the end of a theatre slump — and the beginning of a true comeback season.“Recovery isn’t at hand,” AMC CEO Adam Aron remarked to Variety earlier this year, “but it’s just around the corner. You can reach out and almost touch it. And as good as the back half of this year looks, 2026 seems even stronger.”What’s ahead could bring even more reasons to head back to theatres. In April, Cinema United President Michael O’Leary called for studios to commit to a 45-day baseline window for all films to be in theatres because “for most movies, the ultimate box office success and consumer demand cannot be effectively determined short of [that] window.” The previous month, Deadline reported that AMC Entertainment unveiled plans to open 40 new Dolby Cinema auditoriums across the US by 2027, a strategic move to promote premium movie experiences that can only be enjoyed in theatres. Other incentives to lure moviegoers back have been tried since the pandemic began in 2020, but they haven’t moved the needle much. Perhaps audiences will be more receptive now while interest is high. Of course, visionary movies have a lot to do with that — hence the fevered response to “Sinners” — so hopefully, Hollywood is paying close attention. It’s evident that the appetite for theatrical experiences is still there — audiences just need good reasons to show up. Whether this is a turning point or just a fleeting moment all depends on the film industry’s next move. For the future’s sake, let’s hope they make the right one.Related...From Minecraft To Barbie And Minions – Like It Or Not, Gen Alpha's TikTok Trends Are Shaping CinemaSinners Is A Box-Office Hit And Proves Critics WrongThe Rudest Things You Can Do At The Cinema

Comments

Breaking news

Two injured at school after pupil ‘seen wandering around brandishing huge knife’

Comments

Breaking news

Two injured at school after pupil ‘seen wandering around brandishing huge knife’

Driver arrested after car ploughs into crowd seriously injuring four including child

Dinosaurs were probably not doomed for extinction and could exist today — if it weren’t for the giant asteroid

PHOTO COLLECTION: Kentucky Derby

This man has been bitten by snakes 200 times – now his blood could save lives

Warren Buffett’s best and worst investments in his 60 years as Berkshire Hathaway CEO

New NHS tech promises faster diagnosis for millions of cancer patients

Post office worker seen on camera beating young girl while in full uniform

Driver of Ctour Holiday van involved in Idaho crash was licensed in California

AOC town hall descends into chaos as protester calls her a ‘liar’

First look at artworks commissioned by King Charles to mark coronation

Sir Chris Hoy forced to leave hotel room at 4am after late-night blunder

Person rescued after horror Scots cliff fall as coastguard chopper scrambled

There is no sugar coating it — the local elections were a terrible night for Sir Keir Starmer

Fury as British soldiers BANNED from flying drones over people in training due to health and safety rules

Virginia Giuffre’s ‘£12m’ Prince Andrew settlement FROZEN amid bitter inheritance battle between her husband & family

Fury as dozy defence chiefs lose arsenal of guns including KALASHNIKOV & hundreds of rounds of ammunition in last year

Fury as disgraced Huw Edwards ignores BBC pleas to return £200k wages he was paid after his arrest

Russell Brand guarded by boxer pal of Tyson Fury as he appeared in court on rape and sex assault charges

'I paid £250 for my lunch at David Beckham's swanky 50th venue – and left hungry'

Madeline McCann's parents seen at annual vigil for missing girl for first time in years

Urgent warning to take cyber attack threat 'very seriously' as Co-op and M&S hit

Haydock stabbing: Second person arrested on suspicion of murder after man knifed to death

Moment brave UK beachgoers throw shark related to great white back into ocean

Barack Obama surprisingly imitates wife Michelle's latest quirk in yet another dinner without her

Ioan Gruffudd says he saw ex-wife Alice Evans try to give their children COCAINE in latest twist in showbiz's bitterest-ever marriage split

Adolescence's Owen Cooper stars in Sam Fender's new music video for Little Bit Closer as teen's acting career flourishes

Labour rebels tell PM: change or die - as voters tell MoS poll they expect Farage to be the next Prime Minister

Drawing of a sailing boat with hidden message that nine-year-old King Charles gifted to his matron could fetch £16,000 at auction

REVEALED: How the People's Pope shielded sexual predators in the clergy - including one priest accused of violently raping nuns

Bridget Jones author Helen Fielding: I was groped all the time by my colleagues when I worked for the BBC

Shocking moment Star Wars fans cheer and clap during traumatic scene in 20 year anniversary screening of Revenge of the Sith

TALK OF THE TOWN: Stella McCartney's set to give up her Bond Street flagship as losses mount

Britain's Got Talent's Golden Buzzer act Stacey Leadbeatter gets through to FINAL after being struck down with illness and fearing she wouldn't be able to sing

Half of Britons 'would not fight for their country under any circumstances today'

No wonder Nigel is hoovering up votes - my party has abandoned its core supporters, writes Labour MP DAN CARDEN

Ex-BBC chief claims corporation's Arabic channel is the 'media wing of Hamas' as Tim Davie faces calls to clamp down on output

Kemi Badenoch urged to be bold as critics warn she has a year to restore Tory hopes from the 'existential' threat of Reform UK

Now British drone troops destined to aid Ukraine's war effort face new enemy: Health and safety!

Trade union advises staff at newly christened Reform UK councils to sign up after jubilant Nigel Farage promised Trump-esque cuts to jobs

Match-fixing scandal to Crucible final - fall and rise of Zhao

Verstappen beats Norris to Miami pole

Arsenal to use 'anger and rage' of Bournemouth loss against PSG

Labour minister sorry over grooming gangs remark

From One Forest to Another: A Homeless Sweep Changes Little

Poised to Expand Gaza Offensive, Israel Calls Up Thousands of Reserve Soldiers

14 children arrested over death of boy in a warehouse fire

Emmanuel College admissions official accused of attempting to pay applicant, 17, for sex

Who is Greg Abel, the executive picked to be successor to Warren Buffett?

Rep. Jasmine Crockett says majority of GOP lawmakers think Trump’s tariffs are ‘crazy’

School superintendent put on leave after ex-teacher husband is arrested on child porn parole violation

Second person charged with arson in New Jersey Pine Barrens fire

Rangers legend Duncan Ferguson admits being £4m in debt was lowest moment

Drivers urged to remove four items from cars immediately this weekend

Gang of 14 youths arrested for manslaughter after missing boy dies in fire

Lewis Capaldi performs Edinburgh gig two years on in surprise appearance

Fourteen children arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after industrial fire

Madeleine McCann family mark 18th anniversary of disappearance ahead of 22nd birthday

Cabinet minister Lucy Powell should RESIGN after dismissing grooming gangs scandal as “dog whistle”, Tories say

Militant doctors’ union tells activists to hold pizza nights to drum up strike support