After Years of Pain, a $10B+ Year Puts Hollywood Back in Business
Streaming and the pandemic proved worthy antagonists, but Hollywood’s near-death experience was just an opening act. With cinema attendance up 7% from last year, domestic ticket sales have already hit $4.46B YTD, the highest since 2019. As the industry closes in on its first $10B+ year in over half a decade, the comeback is broader than anyone expected.
- Disney’s Toy Story 5 set a franchise record with a $160M domestic debut — marking the biggest North American opening since A Minecraft Movie.
- Meanwhile, microbudget horror hit Obsession crossed $333M globally — while strong Spider-Man presales signal momentum well beyond one blockbuster.
Something for everyone: This rebound comes as a mega slate of releases gave Hollywood what it needed most. Industry veterans credit uplifting stories like Project Hail Mary for drawing general audiences, nostalgia titles like The Devil Wears Prada 2 for bringing millennials back, and digitally native content for pulling Gen Z into theaters. Meanwhile, premium IMAX seats for upcoming releases like The Odyssey and Dune: Part III are already selling at up to $50 apiece. Even so, these numbers held for five straight years in the late 2010s, back when Dom Toretto captivated us all.
