Cinema attendance and field workplace have remained under pre-COVID pandemic ranges, so what can studios and exhibitors do to place individuals again in recliners and different movie show seats? Administration consulting agency Bain & Co., in a brand new analysis report, shares some ideas and insights.
The massive-picture takeaway from Bain companions Chris Xanthakis, Nicole Magoon, and Daniel Hong: “Profitable corporations will put money into premiumization, personalization, and partnerships to attract individuals again to theaters.” In any case: “Audiences haven’t deserted theaters; they want a extra compelling purpose to go.”
Their new report, which was accomplished earlier than the Netflix deal for Warner Bros. Discovery, which has raised extra considerations about the way forward for cinemagoing, begins off in an ominous method. “For twenty years, film theaters have persistently wrestled with easy methods to get individuals into seats. At present, that problem has grow to be an existential menace,” it highlights. “Whereas shopper spending on video streaming subscriptions surged from 2010 by 2024, North American box-office income in actual phrases fell throughout the identical timeframe. Ticket costs in actual phrases are near flat since 2010, however the price of a go to has risen as the rise in concessions income per patron has outpaced inflation. In consequence, customers now see cinema as costly.”
The pandemic exacerbated these traits, placing them into “overdrive,” because the Bain specialists emphasize. “In 2020 and 2021, launch schedules collapsed, shopper habits modified, and digital platforms gained floor. Though a 2025 Bain media consumption survey of greater than 5,000 US customers discovered that about half of them want they attended extra in-person occasions, this hasn’t translated right into a restoration for theatrical exhibition, with home cinema attendance nonetheless simply 64 p.c of prepandemic ranges, in line with information as of November from The Numbers.”
Main studios, in the meantime, have seen the variety of their large releases stay a couple of fifth under pre-pandemic ranges, filling the ensuing hole with movies from smaller affiliated studios.
All this involves a head in what Bain dubs the “Flooded Period,” the place media is in all places, with new applied sciences enabling “a deluge of ‘ok’ content material.” On this atmosphere, “anybody can compete, however not everybody can compete profitably,” the consultancy warns.
So, how does the cinema expertise match into this time? Its key advantages are “immersion, spectacle, and shared experiences,” the Bain report highlights. “However that is at odds with individuals’s evolving consumption of media, which is more and more short-form, interactive, and digital.” Its suggestions deal with premium experiences, neighborhood, personalization, and partnerships.
The premium providing is a key start line. “Business leaders acknowledge that, greater than ever, cinema should reframe itself as a premium expertise, not mere content material,” the Bain consultants write. “Seeing a film in theaters is an occasion, a vacation spot, an expertise that’s much more inexpensive than a ticket to a Taylor Swift live performance. Theaters can ship on this promise through premium auditoriums, service, and personalization that may’t be replicated at house.”
A part of the expertise is a way of neighborhood, Bain argues. “Cinemas can harness neighborhood to attract individuals in,” the corporate believes. “One path is to supply social areas and host neighborhood occasions, taking a cue from unbiased cinemas, which generally supply movie golf equipment, themed watch occasions, and director Q&As.” This social element additionally interprets into social media, similar to Instagram and TikTok, memes, video essays, podcasts, response movies, and cosplay, in line with the consultancy. “Our 2025 media consumption survey discovered that 64 p.c of U.S. location-based leisure attendees share their experiences on social media,” its report concludes. “That is earned media that cinemas and studios can lean into and actively assist.” Information partnerships can additional improve the hunt for alternatives.
However what content material attracts within the “Flooded Period”? Bain suggests gamers ought to “stay recent with new content material and new codecs” along with large, established franchises. “Proudly owning common IP stays key. In 2024, the top-grossing U.S. movies had been overwhelmingly franchise extensions of authentic IP,” the Bain report emphasizes. “However nice IP and huge advertising and marketing budgets alone don’t assure film success, they usually’re inadequate” in a world the place many a theater seat stays empty. “Audiences crave novelty. Observe the perennial breakout successes of modern authentic films, reside streams, and live performance movies. … In response, we anticipate extra theaters will forge new sorts of partnerships to ship inventive content material and modern codecs for purchasers.” On this context, live performance films and reside sports activities “have proven that there are different methods to attract audiences to film theaters,” the consultancy highlights.
“Cinema executives acknowledge that they don’t have any selection however to reimagine the movie show expertise,” the Bain crew concludes. The successful corporations will put money into premium, customized choices that may’t be replicated at house.”