The year 2020 saw a decline in many prominent industries which thrived on face-to-face contact with others and experiences which required close proximity. One example of this is the movie theater industry, which also had to deal with the rise of streaming and the convenience that came alongside it, due to a reduced cost and the availability to rewatch the movie at any time. Many local theaters closed during this time and even chains had to downsize their number of locations. Due to this, many may assume that the movie theater industry is still dying and unlikely to become popular again.

However,  market trends and analyses conducted in January of this year actually spell out the opposite future for movie theaters. While the market currently is valued around $16.1 billion, it is expected to grow to $26.92 billion in the US alone. Globally, from 2024 to 2032, researchers expect the industry to continue to grow in a positive direction. In 2028, the industry as a whole is expected to grow to $87.6 billion.

Part of the success and increased engagement with movie theaters has been the trend of making a day around going to the theater. Rather than just promoting the movie, people and film companies have started to promote the experience around the movie. People on social media frequently post themselves going to the movie theaters and encourage others to do the same. This was first observed on a major scale with the popularity of “Barbenheimer” in the summer of 2023, where consumers would see both Barbie and Oppeinheimer in the same day and dress accordingly with all pink for Barbie and all-black and more formal wear for Oppenheimer. People felt that they were a part of something special. Continuing that trend and within the same year, the Taylor Swift Eras Tour also increased domestic sales in the US due to its popularity and the community that fans of Swift brought to the theater.

Additionally, the experience of the movie theater is moving away from the traditional viewing experience. The food offered at the movies has greatly expanded past popcorn in a traditional bucket and now may include more options associated with a sit-down restaurant. In regards to subverting viewing expectations, Dolby and IMAX theaters, despite their higher cost when compared to regular tickets, offer surround sound and visual differences that the consumer cannot replicate in their home.  

Even American Movie Classics (AMC), who had been facing all-time-lows when selling $250 million worth of their stocks and falling 14% in the stock market, had good news in the past months. “My good news on this Easter Sunday is that in March, the domestic industry box office finally turned upward. The best March in five years,” CEO Adam Aron on X said. “This is so encouraging in looking  at the movie slate deeper into 2024.  Many superb movies are coming.”

While it is easy to be pessimistic in the face of an industry that represents a distant past, the movie theater industry continues to innovate and optimize their experience to stay relevant and current. It is that understanding of consumers needs and wants that has kept the industry alive since its creation. 

Consumer activity to come could still make or break the fate of the industry, as all predicted trends are still dependent on what the consumer ends up doing. Still, it seems that movie theaters have created a niche for themselves that has increased their staying power. For all the movie-theater fans out there, supporting these local movie theaters and chains promotes community and togetherness in a way that streaming cannot yet emulate.