Box Office Drops 5% in 2014: What’s Behind the Fall

Variety ^ | January 1, 2014 | Brent Lang

[C19fan]

Without Iron Man, Batman or James Bond to bolster ticket sales, the overall box office plunged 5.2% in 2014, topping out at $10.3 billion domestically. Audiences cooled to Hollywood offerings, voting with their feet as attendance dropped by an estimated 6% to 1.26 billion, the lowest figure in nearly two decades.

“This was the most flabbergasting year ever,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with Rentrak. “The good news is that the movie business had a great year in 2013. A record breaker. The bad news was that in 2014, it was measured against that success.”

Although there were some blockbusters such as “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “The LEGO Movie” and “Maleficent,” many of the big films and sequels didn’t give off as loud of a bang. Franchises such as “The Amazing Spider-Man” and “The Hunger Games” put up impressive global numbers, but showed some signs of age when they couldn’t match the domestic grosses of previous installments.

[Hugin]

Crappy movies? Just a hunch.

[Old Sarge]

Crappy movies?

[Rummyfan]

Lousy movies....

[grania]

crappy movies

That and not hyping movies that don't cost a zillion dollars to produce.

[WashingtonSource]

Many are crappy because they are used as vehicles to advance leftist ideology — those movies SUCK!

[fatnotlazy]

I noticed that one of the multiplexes near me is closing for good. It's a sign of the times. People can't afford to pay 10 or 15 dollars for a movie, particularly if they are taking spouses and children. Add to that refreshments, parking in some places, maybe a meal before or after the movie and it's an expensive day or night out. And if the movie is bad, the experience is even more painful.

I'm so glad I subscribe to Netflix and other such services. For a low monthly fee, I can see a movie in the comfort of my living room if I'm willing to wait a few months or so after release. And if the movie is a dud, no great loss.

[ctdonath2]

“showed some signs of age when they couldn’t match the domestic grosses of previous installments.”

Sequels rarely perform like the original.

[RoosterRedux]

What’s behind it? Roku and streaming.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

I saw a good one the other night called Whiplash. It's about a jazz drummer in a music school under a tough teacher. The whole premise was absurd but it worked because it was used as a metaphor. J.K. Simmons who played the teacher was incredible, fantastic actor.

[chrisser]

Add to that refreshments, parking in some places, maybe a meal before or after the movie and it's an expensive day or night out.

When I was in high school (early 80s), going to a movie was a relatively cheap date. We were willing to take a chance on what might be a bad movie.

Nowadays, besides the fact that I can just wait, read plenty of reviews (usually on FR) and then rent a digital version in the comfort of my home of a movie I have a reasonable expectation of enjoying, the cost of visiting the movies has soared, and the likelihood of seeing one worth watching has plummeted.

It's simple economics. Cost is high, probability of value is low, alternatives abound and cost far less. The only thing I find worth visiting a theater to see these days tends to be Pixar cartoons.

[AF_Blue]

1. Crappy movies

2. Good movies, but not worth paying $12-$15 per ticket and sitting through 15-30 minutes of previews / theater commercials when one can wait until it’s released on streaming video or DVD and have a family dinner-and-a-movie night

3. Reasonably-priced home theater setups with large, flat-screen TVs, which also contributes to #2.

[MrB]

When you make movies for other leftist hollywood types instead of for the public at large,

you’re not going to get the size of audience you need to “make box office”.

Of course, it’s a lot more important to most of these folks to have peer approval than to make a lot of bank.

[ken5050]

When I was in HS ( early 60’s) we went to the movies for a cheap date..but never watched the movie...

[SECURE AMERICA]

Crap movies and ridiculous prices....

[norwaypinesavage]

Add to all of the above: Intolerable sound systems that damage your ears with background noise so loud that you can’t hear the speaking.

[fwdude]

After the LOTR series finished out, it was all downhill from there. I have rarely watched a movie in a theater that I have enjoyed since.

[Mad Dawgg]

"Crappy movies? Just a hunch."

[VRWC For Truth]

All gay, all the time.

[Texas Eagle]

Ten dollar tickets. Ten dollar popcorn. Ten dollar soft drinks. Thirty minutes of previews.

If I just wait a few months I can watch the same movies on my 60" flat screen with surround sound for free. Or 2 or 3 dollars at most.