Box Office revenue has hit its lowest point in decades.
With movie theaters across America closed since March because of coronavirus, seeing movies on the big screen hasn’t been an option for many people. Now, the numbers for 2020 are expected to be the worst we’ve seen since maybe the late 1970s. (REVIEW: ‘Westworld’ Season 3 Ends With The Possible Deaths Of Multiple Characters)
The Hollywood Reporter reported the following on the situation Monday morning:
Preliminary estimates show North American movie ticket sales for 2020 inching toward $2.3 billion. That would be the lowest showing since the early 1980s, if not the late 1970s, and that’s before adjusting for inflation. Box-office tracking didn’t begin in earnest until the early ’80s, so sourcing is complicated, although the Motion Picture Association shows domestic revenue hitting $4 billion for the first time in 1984.
Presently, domestic revenue for 2020 stands at around $2.2 billion, according to Comscore. That’s down roughly 80 percent from 2019.
The unfortunate reality is that movie theaters seem cooked for the time being. Until we fully open up, I just don’t see box office revenue increasing.
As long as restrictions stay in place, then theaters will be closed or operating at limited capacity. That’s going to make it tough to see a revenue boost.
The other problem for movie theaters is that streaming content at your house is more popular than ever, and I’m not sure that’s ever going to change.
The train of watching movies at home instead of going out appears to have left the station for good. After all, Warner Bros. is dumping its entire 2021 slate on HBO Max.
Good luck convincing people to go back to theaters after that move.
Let us know in the comments when you plan on hitting up a theater again. It probably won’t be for a long time!