Even though there’s still $2 billion to $3 billion missing in the post Covid annual domestic box office, there was plenty to be thankful for in 2024 which is coming in at an estimated $8.72 billion , -3% from 2023’s $9 billion. That figure is factored from Comscore and Deadline calculations.
First of all, many were expecting 2024 to final at $8 billion, so the fact that we’re $720M beyond that point in a year which was half wrecked by the aftermath of the strikes, is praiseworthy. There were fewer tentpoles in Q1, not to mention there wasn’t a Marvel Studios movie to fire up summer in early May (that didn’t come until late July with Deadpool & Wolverine which at $211.4M is the highest opening of the year).
Before the first weekend in May, the domestic box office was lagging -20% behind 2023’s running cume. As of yesterday, the U.S.
/Canada 2024 box office was only -3% behind 2023. That’s how much ground we made up, and that speaks volumes about moviegoing. That catch-up is an indication that great content (because arguably all the bigger and better films opened from summer onward) remains a key draw for bringing audiences back to cinemas.
The number of movies opening $20M or more in 2024 was down versus 2023, 34 films to 40 films, however, the number of titles seeing $100M+ openings remained the same at five ( Inside Out 2 $154.2M, Deadpool & Wolverine $211.4M, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice $111M, Wicked $112.
5M and Moana 2 $139.7M). The number of movies grossing north.
