For the first time since the start of the pandemic, domestic box office receipts nearly surpassed $1 billion in June, with a semblance of normalcy returning to multiplexes. Hollywood studios have released a small army of event titles that have found their audience, but execs remain concerned about the gap in the schedule once the summer run is over.
The last time combined ticket sales topped $1 billion in any given month was in December 2019, when revenue jumped to $1.16 billion. According to Comscore, the final figures show June 2022 earnings of nearly $986 million. This number had a last-minute increase thanks to Minions: The Rise of Gru, which It took in $10.8 million from Thursday afternoon sketches on the last day of the month before opening to record numbers on the July 4th weekend.
Overall, June was up 141% from June 2021’s $409.2 million, but down 11.6% from June 2019’s $1.114 billion.
“It is still a great achievement. And figuratively speaking, if the month is just a few cents away from the $1 billion milestone, that’s no less impressive,” said Paul Dergarebedian, a box office analyst at Comscore. the hollywood reporter.
Still, June’s Gloom remains a box office hit for some observers.
“Publicly, there’s a lot of celebration for the box office recovery,” says one studio executive. THR. “In particular, there is a lot of concern about the impending product shortage.”
Add another Hollywood exec: “We are still in pandemic recovery mode and have not returned to pre-pandemic revenue and participation, but this summer’s box office results are significantly better than we expected..”
The boom was led by Top of Paramount and Skydance Weapon: Maverick, which became an unstoppable hit, grossing $1.11 billion globally since its Memorial Day release and is still going strong a month later. The only other title to surpass the $1 billion milestone in the pandemic era was in December 2021. Spider-Man: No Way Home (That’s nearly $1.9 billion.) best weapon Sequels are important because they appeal to all audiences, not just superhero-obsessed fans. In addition, both titles have enjoyed success outside China, where fewer and fewer Hollywood blockbusters are being released.
Among the highest-grossing films, Marvel Studios Doctor Strange came in The many facets of madness.Launched in early May, it surpassed US$950 million worldwide, and in June jurassic world domain It surpassed $800 million globally during the 4th of July holiday.
Warner Bros.’ Elvis — Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis Presley biopic — also paved the way for a big win with $51 million more than expected over the weekend of June 24-26, thanks to older viewers (nearly 30% of the first-time viewership). weekend was longer). 55).
Families was another challenging demo during the pandemic, but that narrative is changing dramatically with the debut of Illumination and Universal. Minions: The Rise of Gruwhich opened to a record $129 (or more when final results are known) over the long July 4th weekend to provide one of the best starts ever for an animated film, pandemic or not. minions 2 Helped alleviate hand bells that went off last month during June’s summer animated photo one light yearfrom Pixar and Disney, opened to $51 million domestically. Meanwhile one light year Now that it’s passed the $200 million mark globally, including $100 million domestically, it’s still a huge disappointment.
Minions: The Rise of Gru Complete the circle by indicating that all segments of the audience are ready to consider upgrading their moviegoing habits to pre-pandemic habits, provided there is a varied offering.
“I think things are getting better. The biggest problem for the box office is the content. When there’s depth in the product, people seem to show up,” said Eric Handler, Wall Street analyst at MKM Partners. “We will be in the typical summer floods. So there’s not much to have for a while.
While the July market has many intriguing titles, including Thor: love and thunder (8th of July), No (July 22) and DC’s League of Super Pets (July 29): The release schedule becomes a big question mark for several months in terms of event pricing. A possible breakout for August is from Sony Bullet trainWith Brad Pitt.
The next big superhero movie will be Warner Bros.’ black adamwhich premieres on October 21 against the Julia Roberts-George Clooney Roma Commission. ticket to heavenby Universal . A week earlier, Universal halloween is over debuts in theaters (this last film has a lot of potential, but is still a premier title in the genre).
Analysts expect the Thanksgiving and Christmas box office to renew the momentum enjoyed in recent weeks.
In terms of year-end marquees, some high-profile titles include Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Ever (November 11), Disney’s animated Thanksgiving giveaway strange world (November 23), 20th century Avatar: The Way of Water (December 16), New Line’s Shazam! wrath of the gods and animation by DreamWorks Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (both open December 21) and Paramount’s Babylon Christmas day
“Original films and low to mid-level releases before November will likely result in a brief ‘cool off’ period before the film picks up again over the holidays and shifts to a more complete 2023 release schedule,” says Shawn Robbins, Box with an office analyst professional box office.
Dergarebedian and Robbins are among many analysts who believe domestic revenue could reach $7.5 billion to $8 billion by 2022, about 70% of pre-pandemic levels. (It grossed $11.4 billion at the North American box office in 2019.)
According to Comscore, domestic revenue as of July 4, 2022 was $3.9 billion. This is nearly 250% more than in 2021, but 32% less than in 2019. Revenue for the summer through July 4 was $1.96 billion, nearly 200% more than the same period in 2021 and 15% more less than in 2019.
Says Robbins, “It’s a big change from where things were a year or two ago. While I hesitate to say that all audiences are back, the trendline is approaching the point where most are ready. “
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Emily Jhon is a product and service reviewer at Gossipify, known for her honest evaluations and thorough analysis. With a background in marketing and consumer research, she offers valuable insights to readers. She has been writing for Gossipify for several years and has a degree in Marketing and Consumer Research from the University of Oxford.
