With ticket sales down and newly released movies hitting streaming and video-on-demand (VOD) services in record time, it’s not surprising that films are struggling to make it big in theaters. For comparison, 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road grossed a whopping $45 million over a non-holiday opening weekend, which ultimately led to an impressive $380 million global box office draw. Meanwhile, Furiosa, which is equally well-received, earned just $32 million over the four days that make up Memorial Day weekend. Sadly, Hollywood’s slump is becoming much more of a pattern, and there are clear-cut reasons why.

They are:

  1. The Movie Theater Experience Isn’t Always Great
  2. Movie Theaters Are Expensive
  3. Bigger Budgets Puts Greater Box Office Expectations On Some Movies
  4. The COVID-19 Pandemic Changed Moviegoing Habit
  5. Audiences Have Been Conditioned That New Theatrical Releases Will Quickly Go To VOD
  6. Streaming Means There’s More Choice At Home Than In Theaters