Movie theaters are being forced to evolve

Computer graphic image of a movie theater with empty seats and a screen that says "The End" — 'They need to convince people that it's worth the money and the time … to come into the theater'

(Image credit: artpartner-images / Getty Images)

Movie theaters have not had an easy go of it. In 2020, when the pandemic had everyone sheltering in place, moviegoers quickly grew accustomed to the convenience of at-home streaming. Last year's Hollywood strikes complicated the issue, as the strikes stalled or halted many anticipated film productions and left holes in the box office schedule. Plenty of movie theaters have since shuttered, and as of 2023, "ticket sales were still one-third lower than in 2019," said Marketplace.

Despite this, the big screen remains the best place to appreciate a film's sound and visuals, and the communal aspect of a theater cannot be replicated at home. We are social creatures, after all, and studies show that people have more fun watching movies in theaters. This is perhaps especially true of comedies, as laughter is (scientifically) contagious.

Even amid myriad struggles, movie theaters do not seem to be going anywhere. Last summer saw a surge in attendance for "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer," a cultural phenomenon known fondly as Barbenheimer. Audiences are not gone, but the landscape is different.

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How and why are movie theaters struggling?

The most obvious reason is the advent of streaming. The pandemic got people used to doing everything from home, and many movies became available on streaming services almost immediately. As streaming kept audiences "glued to the small screen," said The Economist, Americans who went to the cinema more than five times in 2000 went fewer than three times in 2023. An even more stark statistic: "One out of every five moviegoers has vanished since the pandemic," said Th Hollywood Reporter.

Now, many low-to-mid-budget films barely get theatrical releases at all. And while box office numbers do not measure a film's quality, they have long been the standard by which financiers measure a project's success. "The box office has a bad case of long Covid," said The Economist. "Worldwide takings last year were a quarter below their pre-pandemic peak."

An excess of advertisements may be one annoyance for viewers, who must sit through 25 minutes of previews and ads before their program begins. This "expanding pre-show folderol" has "turned moviegoing into an endurance test," said an opinion writer for The Washington Post. Bad theater etiquette is also on the rise, as some moviegoers are using their phones, talking, fighting and causing general chaos in the aisles, according to The Guardian.

How are movie theaters adapting?

Movie theaters have one unexpected virtue: their "unorthodox real estate" — sloped floors and windowless rooms — prevents landlords from easily using them for any other purpose, said The Wall Street Journal. Although this alone will not save them, movie theaters are finding innovative ways to appeal to audiences. "Cinema operators are investing in the basics, improving sounds, picture quality and seating as well as in bolstering its food and beverage offerings, events and alternative programming," said CNBC. These changes turn simple moviegoing into an immersive, all-inclusive experience. The theaters "need to convince people that it's worth the money and the time and possibly sitting next to someone who's coughing or laughing too loud to come into the theater," said Wall Street Journal reporter Kate King. Theaters are luring prospective crowds in with comfy reclining chairs, vast food and alcohol options with waiter service, and upgraded projectors and sound systems.

"Loyalty programs, direct marketing and special events" are some additional tactics movie theater chains are employing. AMC's first-ever advertising campaign starring Nicole Kidman became a cult classic in 2021; brilliant lines like "heartbreak feels good in a place like this" reminded viewers why they love coming to the movies in the first place. (People applaud when the ad plays.)

The biggest of the big screens have also been thriving. "IMAX, whose screens are as large as [125 feet] wide with denture-rattling sound systems, had worldwide box-office takings of $1.1B last year and its biggest-ever haul in America and Canada," said The Economist. "As cinemagoing changes from a regular habit into an occasional treat, the fanciest theaters are prospering."

Anya Jaremko-Greenwold has worked as a story editor at The Week since 2024. She previously worked at FLOOD Magazine, Woman's World, First for Women, DGO Magazine and BOMB Magazine. Anya's culture writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Jezebel, Vice and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among others.