Topline<\/p>\n
Movie theaters just had their lowest-grossing summer in three years, as this year\u2019s total barely fell below last summer\u2019s gross as moviegoing cooled in August, despite early analyst expectations that this summer could have been a return to box office glory. <\/p>\n
This summer barely fell under last summer’s total box office gross. (Photo by Erik McGregor\/LightRocket via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
LightRocket via Getty ImagesKey Facts<\/p>\n
This summer, North American movie theaters grossed $3.67 billion from the beginning of May through Labor Day, just below the $3.68 billion movie theaters made in ticket sales during the summer of 2024, according to Comscore data.<\/p>\n
The box office is a disappointment for theaters, as Comscore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian told Forbes he initially thought this summer could have reached $4 billion based on the box office\u2019s strong performance in May, though the summer box office cooled later in the season.<\/p>\n
Though the summer started with the highest-grossing<\/a> Memorial Day weekend in history, powered by \u201cLilo & Stitch\u201d and \u201cMission Impossible \u2014 The Final Reckoning,\u201d it went out with a whimper as Labor Day weekend was one of the worst weekends at the box office this year so far. <\/p>\n August, in particular, was a rough month for moviegoing: Dergarabedian told Forbes every weekend in August grossed less than the corresponding weekend from summer 2024, as weeks-old movies like \u201cWeapons\u201d and \u201cFreakier Friday\u201d continued to rule the box office without serious competition.<\/p>\n Both this summer and the summer of 2024 failed to match the \u201cBarbenheimer\u201d-powered summer of 2023, which was the best-performing summer after the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted moviegoing, making $4.1 billion in total gross, according to Comscore data.<\/p>\n How Has The Industry Reacted To The Disappointing Summer Box Office?<\/p>\n An unnamed studio executive told the Hollywood Reporter<\/a> they are \u201cvery, very nervous for the future\u201d following the disappointing summer box office returns, adding they \u201cdon\u2019t think there is enough of an audience\u201d for movies opening in theaters. Jeff Bock, a box office analyst for Exhibitor Relations, told Variety<\/a> the summer moviegoing season should \u201cstart with a bang, end with a bang,\u201d but \u201cthat didn\u2019t happen this summer, and the results speak for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n Why Was The End-Of-Summer Box Office So Quiet?<\/p>\n After a strong start, the summer went out with a quiet August without any real blockbusters lighting up the box office. The biggest movie of August was \u201cWeapons,\u201d which has grossed $235 million worldwide and led the domestic box office for four weekends, but the box office faced some of the worst weekends of the year as the summer wound down. Last weekend grossed a paltry $55 million, the sixth-worst weekend of the year so far, according to Box Office Mojo<\/a>, and $67 million in total over the holiday weekend. Though \u201cWeapons\u201d won Labor Day weekend<\/a>, the second highest-grossing movie was \u201cJaws,\u201d a re-release of the 50-year-old classic film, which handily outgrossed two new movies in \u201cCaught Stealing\u201d and \u201cThe Roses.\u201d The end of August narrowly avoided being even worse, as Netflix decided to release its smash hit \u201cKPop Demon Hunters\u201d in theaters for two days, which grossed<\/a> $18 million. Unlike some analysts had expected, this summer\u2019s superhero hits\u2014including \u201cSuperman,\u201d but particularly \u201cThe Fantastic Four: First Steps\u201d\u2014fizzled through August. The summer of 2024 was a different story, as the billion-dollar blockbuster \u201cDeadpool & Wolverine\u201d ruled the season\u2019s final weeks.<\/p>\n What Were This Summer\u2019s Biggest Movies?<\/p>\n