Movie theaters need more movies. Will they get enough to truly thrive again?
That was the central question at CinemaCon 2024, the annual convention that brings together Hollywood studios and cinema operators in Las Vegas this week.
Exhibitors have pleaded with major studios to release more films with different budgets on the big screen, while studios have made it clear that their upcoming slate is strong enough to keep them in business.
Once again, CinemaCon, where studios invite executives and movie stars to showcase their upcoming blockbusters, has arrived at a particularly difficult time for the film industry.
After surviving a devastating pandemic that shuttered theaters for months, two of the most important parts of the Hollywood machine, writers and actors, are on strike. The shutdowns – lasting a combined six months – have prompted leading entertainment companies to postpone a number of titles to 2025 instead of 2024, disrupting the supply chain and sparking widespread concern in the exhibition community.
Total box office revenue in the U.S. and Canada is expected to be about $8.5 billion, down from $9 billion in 2023, and a far cry from the pre-pandemic annual numbers of roughly $12 billion.
“It is not enough to simply sit back and want more films,” said Michael O'Leary, president of the National Assembly. For theater owners, during Tuesday's State of the Industry address at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. “We must work with distribution to get more films of all sizes to market.”
Although a full release schedule is expected for 2025, talk of budget cuts, increasing industry consolidation and corporate consolidation has forced exhibitors to prepare for the possibility of a near future with fewer studios producing fewer films.
In the lavish banquet halls and trade fairs of Caesars Palace, theater operators complained about 2024 being portrayed as another “lost year” for cinema – determined despite the gloomy rhetoric to remain optimistic.
“All indications are that the rest of the year is going to be much better,” said David Fetters, vice president of West Mall Theaters in Minnesota and South Dakota. “The product we see here looks great.”
Studios have tried to give exhibitors something to hope for during their CinemaCon presentations — promoting their movie lineups, highlighting filmmakers and cast members, pulling off ridiculous stunts, and running stunt reels, sneak peeks, trailers, and, in some cases, entire featurettes for their films. Industry audience.
The “villain” destroys the house
While promoting their programming for 2024-2025, studios have taken a pause.
Warner Bros.'s distribution execs threw their weight around. Their opening words while dressed as Michael Keaton's Beetlejuice; Dwayne Johnson joined the Polynesian dance troupe during the introduction of Disney's “Moana 2”; Paramount's head of distribution entered the stage in full “gladiator” armor on a golden chariot.
But Universal's presentation of “Wicked” — director Jon M. Chu's film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical — takes the cake. Convention attendees arrived at their seats to find a surprise in their cup holders: illuminated roses for a colorful light show set to a medley of “evil” songs. After the introduction, a pre-recorded message to all the “filmmakers” from Jeff Goldblum’s majestic “The Wizard of Oz” appeared on screen, and Goldblum took the stage in real life.
He was later joined by Michelle Yeoh (Madame Morrible) and Jonathan Bailey (Fierrot), producer Marc Platt, and Cho, who fought back tears as they talked about the casting of the film's lead witches. On cue, Glinda and Elphaba themselves – Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo – emerged from the wings to thunderous applause.
Like Cho, Grande was overcome with emotion and paused briefly to compose herself as she made her remarks. .
Other images shown during studio presentations included Universal's “Despicable Me 4” from Warner Bros. “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga”, “Joker: Folie à Deux”, “A Quiet Place: Day One” by Paramount, “Transformers One”, “Inside Out 2” by Disney and “Deadpool & Wolverine” .
Paramount deal looms
Amid the displays of corporate harmony, it was hard to ignore the elephant in the convention center: the potential merger between Paramount Global and David Ellison's production company, Skydance.
Shares of Paramount Global — home to Paramount Pictures, CBS and many other legacy brands and franchises — fell Wednesday after news that a group of company executives had resigned amid merger discussions.
This would be the latest Hollywood merger in a series of deals, including Disney's acquisition of Fox in 2019 and Warner Bros. Union with Discovery in 2022.
When asked about the theatrical implications of another studio sale in an industry already rapidly consolidating, the National Assn. Theater Owners President Michael O'Leary and the Motion Picture Assn. President Charles Rifkin pretty much waved that off.
“There are always other things we can do as an industry association to advance our industry, and I will cross that bridge when I get to it,” Rifkin said during a press conference at CinemaCon.
Instead of avoiding the topic during the studio's CinemaCon presentation on Thursday, Paramount Pictures president Brian Robbins handled the situation with humor.
“There has been a lot of speculation about our parent company [mergers and acquisitions]said Robbins before joking that Paramount's head of domestic distribution, Chris Aronson, “has now thrown his hat in the ring as a bidder.”
“He started a Kickstarter campaign,” Robbins continued as the audience laughed.
Japanese cinema and religious content is prevalent
With the local film industry in turmoil in recent years, Japanese cinema and religious content have been among the saving graces of movie theaters.
Industry leaders kicked off CinemaCon on Tuesday by praising songs from Crunchyroll, the Sony-owned anime distributor, including the latest “Demon Slayer.”
Mitchell Berger, Crunchyroll's senior vice president of global commerce, said Tuesday that the global animation business generated $14 billion a decade ago and is expected to generate $37 billion next year.
“Anime is so hot right now,” Berger said. “Fans have known about it for years, but now everyone is catching up and realizing it is a cultural and economic force to be reckoned with.”
Last year, cinema company Fathom Events decided to expand its annual Studio Ghibli film series, showing films like Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke and other Hayao Miyazaki classics for five nights each instead of just one or two. Fathom Events CEO Ray Knott said the extended run times allowed these titles to gross 142% more than they had in the past.
“Anime has been one of the films that has done very well for us,” Knott said. “The team is really good at sourcing content and then knowing where the audience is attracting tickets.”
Another type of product currently supporting the exhibition industry is faith-based programming, largely sponsored by the “Voice of Freedom” distribution company Angel Studios.
During its presentation on Wednesday, Angel Studios unveiled its collection of “light-amplifying stories,” including an animated film telling the biblical story of David and a live-action drama about a German priest plotting against the Nazis during World War II. secondly.
“Some of the faith-based things, especially in our part of the country — the Midwest — have had a lot of appeal,” Fetters said.
Knott added that Fathom Events has also had “huge success” in connecting with religious audiences by showcasing content such as episodes of “The Chosen,” a drama series chronicling the life of Jesus Christ. The final season of the series grossed $32 million at the box office, according to Net.
Exhibitors are demanding more film…and flexible windows
Exhibitors say the biggest challenge facing theaters now is the scarcity of theatrical releases. Theater owners urged studio executives at CinemaCon to show more films in theaters — not just the big-budget tent poles reserved for the summer movie season and holiday weekends.
“There's been a bit of a lack of good content because of strikes and things like that,” said Mark Shaw, owner of Shaw Theater in Singapore. “Also, during the pandemic, we lost some of the audience. Trying to bring that audience back to theaters is a huge challenge.
“Whenever we have [blockbuster] “The movie — whether it's 'Barbie' or 'Super Mario' … records are set,” added Bill Barstow, co-founder of ACX Cinemas in Nebraska. “But we don't have enough of them.”
During an industry research panel on Wednesday, Disney distribution executive Kathleen Taff defended the company's decision to postpone some films — including the animated “Elio” and the “Snow White” remake — until 2025, explaining that At least some of these titles haven't been finished in time for a 2024 release.
“From a studio perspective…we need to go hand in hand,” Taff said.
“We had to pick some good dates and we had to make these shifts. And of course we thought about theatres, but the reality is that we are not going to release an incomplete film.
An additional issue affecting independent theater owners and small chains is the studio-mandated three-week minimum for major films. Several exhibitors told the Times that these companies cannot allow a single film to be on screen for three weeks because there simply are not enough residents where they work to fill the seats for that long.
“If you play it for two weeks, the community has already seen it,” said Colleen Barstow, vice president of ACX Cinemas.
“There is no need to require commitments of three weeks or more,” said Chris Johnson, CEO of Classic Cinemas in Illinois. “If you take a hit, we'll take it.”
Next Limits: “Alternative Content”
One way exhibitors are trying to fill the void in studio releases is by offering “alternative content” — from re-releases of beloved films and TV show spin-offs to music performances and sporting events.
A good example of this phenomenon is AMC Theaters' distribution of Taylor Swift's “The Eras Tour” and Beyoncé's “Renaissance.”
Fathom Events, which has been in the alternative content business for decades, goes a step further by attaching live, pre-recorded Q&As to its shows, as well as handing out collectible merchandise as an added incentive for fans.
“You go to a regular movie, you buy the ticket, you watch the movie — I don't mean to diminish the movie experience in any way — but that's about it,” Knott said. “With us, you'll get something special.”
Major companies like AMC have partnered with studios to up their merchandise game as well. See: the infamous “Dune 2” popcorn bucket, which inspired Disney to pledge at CinemaCon to introduce the must-have “Deadpool 3” popcorn bucket.
“There are some studios that unintentionally make crude, unkempt popcorn buckets,” Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige joked during Disney's presentation. “Then there are the popcorn buckets designed by Deadpool.”
