Will 2024 Be The Year The Entertainment Industry Finally Recovers?
The pandemic unquestionably affected every industry, most notably the entertainment industry. It left movie theaters aching for people to buy a ticket, some buttery popcorn, and get back into those reclining seats. Not only did it shift how people view entertainment, it shifted how people consume it. Just days after AMC, the largest US movie theater chain, closed all of its cinemas in March 2020, director Christopher Nolan issued a public plea to save movie theaters, saying, "When this crisis passes, the need for collective human engagement, the need to live and love and laugh and cry together, will be more powerful than ever." Maybe Nolan knew — I’d like to think he did — but this very year audiences flocked back to theaters, opting to view his very own blockbuster film Oppenheimer on the big screen rather than their TVs at home. Films such as Oppenheimer and Barbie, or should I say Barbenheimer, have given hope to not only the movie theater industry, but the entertainment industry and viewers as a whole after the pandemic.
This past year, with the double strike of screenwriters and actors, which lasted a substantial stretch of 148 days and 118 days respectively, people thought the entertainment industry would be forever doomed — and rightfully so. The strike shut down productions and left nothing short of a bitter aftertaste for those directly involved in the industry as well as fearful consumers who were waiting for their favorite shows and movies to be released. Gold stocks (publicly traded stocks), such as Disney, were left dented after a string of would-be blockbusters went bust. Then there was the paramount epicenter of it all, AI, that loomed over and gave an uncertainty of the future of this industry that hasn’t been seen before. Yet, in 2023, the industry shockingly persisted, proving the want for entertainment is anything but evanescent.
I’ve been guilty of it, seeing an enticing ad for a movie, yet opting to wait a few more months to view it via a streaming service. The temptation is clearly there, particularly with the soaring prices of both streaming services and movie tickets. So yes, the rise of streaming services has led to a decline in theater attendance. According to the Motion Picture Association, global theater attendance dropped by 4% in 2021, in part due to the availability of films on streaming platforms. But in 2023, along with the strike and evident delay of movie productions, ticket sales were actually up 21% from 2022, according to data firm Comscore.
2023’s most talked about film Barbie grossed $1.44 billion and achieved several milestones, including becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 and the 14th highest-grossing film of all time. Oppenheimer, which was a three-hour long film that released at the height of the summer, earned over $900 million at the box office. The want and excitement to get back to the theaters is clearly there. With 2024 bringing on movies that were intended to be released in 2023, I’m inclined to believe that this year will be the year the movie and theater industry officially recovers, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. This years film calendar is jam-packed with movies such as Mean Girls, Dune: Part Two, Deadpool 3, and Joker: Folie à Deux being released.
Despite the continuous roadblocks, 2023 was an unexpectedly successful year for the industry, providing us with movie gems including not only Barbie and Oppenheimer, but Killers of the Flower Moon, Priscilla, and The Iron Claw. It seems as though 2023 was prepping audiences for the absolute killer of a year 2024 will be for movies. So, if you don’t mind, I have a must-watch list to write!
