Global cinema attendance drops in 2024
Irish singer-Songwriter and executive producer Bono (R) and his spouse Irish activist and businesswoman Ali Hewson leave after the screening of the film “Bono: Stories of Surrender” at the 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 16, 2025. (Photo by Valery HACHE / AFP)
CANNES, France — Cinema ticket sales fell 8.8 percent worldwide in 2024 from the previous year. This marked the first annual drop since the Covid pandemic, the European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO) said in Cannes on Friday.
The decline comes after years of recovery for the industry since the collapse triggered by pandemic restrictions in 2020.
“In 2024, a total of 4.8 billion cinema tickets were sold worldwide, generating estimated revenues of 28 billion euros,” Martin Kanzler. He is a film analyst at the EAO, said in a press conference on the sidelines of annual film festival.
“That is 500 million fewer tickets than in 2023,” Kanzler said.
Cinema reaches a new plateau
Since 2020 — a disastrous year for cinemas due to health restrictions — cinema attendance worldwide had been rising.
“Perhaps we have reached a new plateau,” Kanzler said.
Cinema attendance is now at 68 percent of 2019 levels, the last year before the pandemic. This was recorded at more than 70 percent in 2023.
In this sluggish environment, Europe is faring better than other regions of the world. European cinema attendance was at 75 percent of 2019 levels. The decline in ticket sales was just 1.7 percent in 2024.
By contrast, in China — the world’s largest market with a 21 percent share — attendance plunged by 22 percent.
In Europe, two countries stand out for their density of cinemas per capita and a high average attendance rate. These are France and Ireland.
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Regarding productions, 81 percent are linked to films produced in three countries — the United States, China and India, said Manuel Fioroni, an analyst at the EAO.
Chinese and Indian productions are sold almost exclusively to their domestic markets. In contrast, American films are exported and “cross borders easily thanks to their distribution network but also their international audience.”
Cinema industry struggles to cross borders
“Transnational distribution across macro regions remain difficult for theatrical films, with the exception of Hollywood movies, that can travel easily across borders through their distribution network, but also to international audiences,” Fioroni said.
In Europe, 63 percent of cinemagoers saw an American film in 2024.
However, European productions are catching up and recorded a 33 percent market share.
“And this is the best result in four years, even 10 if we exclude somehow the typical year that was 2020 in the middle of the pandemic,” Fioroni said.
Of the 20 biggest box office hits in Europe, 18 are American films.
“Inside Out 2”, “Despicable Me 4” and “Deadpool & Wolverine” took the top three spots.
The two European productions in the top 20 are both French. These are “Un p’tit truc en plus” and “Le comte de Monte-Cristo.”
