Calamity? Anomaly? 2020 was a box office year like no other

When sun sets on 2020 film box office, it’ll be difficult to look at numbers as anything but disastrous.

After five consecutive years of rth American revenues exceeding $11 billion , this year y’re expected to cap out at an almost 40-year low of around $2.3 billion. That’ll be down 80% from last year according to data firm Comscore. Globally, where markets have been able to recover more fully, ticket sales will likely end up somewhere between $11 and $12 billion. Last year, that total hit $42.5 billion . But of course, 2020 is a year with a big asterisk.

“It’s a year like or,” said Jim Orr, president of domestic atrical distribution for Universal Pictures. “We’ve never seen this little business in this industry.”

Outside of January and February, it’s impossible to judge year’s box office by pre-pandemic standards. Box office, in aggregate, is fairly predictable in a rmal year. But when aters shut down March 20, that “all went out window,” said Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst with Comscore. “ unpredictability became constant.”

Most rth American aters weren’t open for six months straight through summer season, which typically accounts for around 40% of year’s profits. For past two years, summer movie season has netted over $4.3 billion. This year it brought in $176.5 million, much of that from drive-in aters .

“ drive-in became hero of summer,” Dergarabedian said.

When indoor aters did start to reopen in late August and early September, it was at limited capacity and with limited product. Currently, about 35% of aters are open in U.S. and some of biggest markets, including New York and Los Angeles, remain closed. Although re have been a stey stream of new releases, blockbuster tentpoles have been few and far between. Some went to streaming services, ors became premium digital rentals, but most simply retreated into 2021 and beyond.

Perhaps re is more telling fact than that 2020 was first time in over a dece without a Marvel movie. Walt Disney Co.’s superhero factory has for past two years topped year-end charts with “ Avengers: Endgame ” and “Black Panr,” and has regularly h two or more films in top 10.

Unsurprisingly, 2020 top 10 is a little chaotic and comprised mostly of films from first two months of year. Sony’s Will Smith sequel “B Boys for Life ” has stayed in first place in rth America since its January release with $206.3 million. Globally it’s in second place to Chinese film “ Eight Hundred” — first time that top worldwide film originated outside of Hollywood. only post-shutdown films to crack top 10 are Christopher lan’s “ Tenet ,” in eighth place with $57.2 million and animated family sequel “ Croods: A New ,” which was released at Thanksgiving and has earned $30.8 million so far to put it in 10th place.

And at least 15 films in top 100 were retro releases , including “Hocus Pocus,” “ Empire Strikes Back,” and “ Nightmare Before Christmas.”

“ silver lining for movie aters is even though people h unlimited options at home, people still sought out movie ater,” Dergarabedian said. “People have a desire to go outside home and be entertained. That desire hasn’t changed but ability to do that was profoundly limited.”

It’s even changed way opening weekends, once a reliable indicator of a film’s long-term prospects, are judged and it might remain that way for a while.

“ instant gratification that we used to be able to deliver on Sunday mornings after opening on a Friday? It’s probably t going to happen again for quite some time,” Orr said.

aters have embraced enhanced safety protocols and experimented with different ways to get people back into seats, including private ater rentals, but attendance throughout fall and winter remained limited.

“People go to movie aters to escape. If you’re going to a movie ater where you have to wear a mask and you have to sit apart and you have to be hyper conscious of your surroundings, that is t how atrical experience is supposed to work,” said John Sloss, principal at media visory firm Cinetic. “To judge this year at all in terms of ater attendance, I think is doing a disservice overall to what’s really going on.”

Moviegoing in 2020 is story of an industry that employs some 150,000 fighting to stay afloat until rmalcy returns, which everyone expects will happen even if it’s t in near future. Small movie ater owners will get a bit of a lifeline from pandemic relief pack.

But effects on businesses have been staggering and it may be a while before full impact is kwn, although re have been some historic developments and compromises. Some invations have been well-received, like Universal’s landmark agreement with various exhibitors to shorten atrical window from 90 days to as little as 17 days in some cases. Ors, like Warner Bros.’ decision to release all of its 2021 films on HBO Max and in aters simultaneously , have t.

It’s secret that streaming services, wher subscription or on demand, filled a huge gap for film fans looking for new content. While at-home options will continue to compete with aters for consumer eyes and dollars, few believe that y are a death-knell for aters. By and large, studios are t looking to abandon atrical model, even if some priorities have shifted to streaming.

“I do think re’s a bright light at end of tunnel,” Orr said. “As vaccinations continue to roll out, I am 100% convinced that people will come running back into aters when it’s possible in ir area. model is t going away.”

Disney CEO Bob Chapek ted at company’s recent investor day that y me $13 billion at box office in 2019.

“That’s t something to sneeze at,” Chapek said.

This past weekend, “Wonder Woman 1984,” which was available to stream on HBO Max for free , also collected $16.7 million from 2,100 rth American aters. That number would have been a disaster before. For pandemic? It's a record.

Im credit: AP