Going to the movie theater is the perfect solution for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Watching the newest movie release with popcorn and candy while the rain is pouring outside. What can be better than that? For many, this was the solution to a rainy day a few years ago. However, after Covid-19, many activities, including the movie theater, have been struggling to regain the fame they once had.
During the pandemic, movie theaters drastically lessened in popularity. A major reason for this was the lack of attendance. Many avoided movie theaters because they involved packing hundreds of people in confined spaces for extended periods of time. Not very ideal during the time of the pandemic. This led to many theaters shutting down. AMC, one of the largest movie theater chains, was even close to filing for bankruptcy due to the lack of sales.
The lack of movies in production was another cause in the downfall of the movie industry. Peter Pan & Wendy, for example, was delayed because of the pandemic. The movie was planned to be released in theaters but due to scheduling conflicts and delays, the movie was released only on Disney+. Similar to Peter Pan & Wendy, many other movies also had to halt production. These delays negatively impacted the attraction to movie theaters.
Today, as the pandemics’ effects slowly begin to fade on the movie industry, movie theaters are reverting to what they were before Covid-19. According to The Numbers, a site with collected movie sales, in 2020 about 200 million tickets were sold. Three years later the number of ticket sales jumped to almost 900 million. A large increase in the total box office also occurred since the start of the pandemic.
Many movies in 2022 and 2023 have contributed to the recent revival of movie theaters. Over the past few summers, Minions: Rise of Gru, Elvis, Barbie and Oppenheimer were a few movies that helped the theaters. Those attending some of these movies even made it a fun event where they would dress up. For Barbie, many dressed in pink.
Other highly successful movies that recently hit theaters include The Little Mermaid, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
A multitude of movies are expected to hit theaters soon. In the next couple of months movies are releasing, including Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Napoleon, and The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds. These movies will further help movie theaters.
Although movie theaters were negatively impacted because of Covid-19, they are slowly beginning to transform into what they used to be: the perfect solution for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Next time you see rain pouring outside, head to the movies for a bucket of popcorn, candy, and a good show!