It’s officially the biggest summer at the box office since COVID, thanks to blockbusters like “The Odyssey” and “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” as well as breakouts like “Backrooms and “Obsession.”
On Monday, domestic revenues for popcorn season reached $4 billion, hitting the milestone for only the second time in the post-pandemic era. Hollywood’s first $4 billion summer since the great box office reset was 2023, when “Barbenheimer” fever propelled ticket sales to $4.09 billion from May to August. That milestone came down to the wire. This year, there are a few weeks to go until Labor Day closes out the season, so the summer stretch will easily rank as the highest-grossing since 2019, according to Rentrak.
“Hitting this $4 billion threshold for only the second time since COVID is truly significant,” says Rentrak’s head of marketplace trends Paul Dergarabedian. “Coming after several tumultuous years, the idea of theatrical moviegoing as something that would be replaced by small-screen entertainment can finally be put to rest.”
The busy four-month frame is crucial for the industry, representing 40% of the annual box office. Prior to COVID, summer revenues regularly surpassed the $4 billion benchmark, with 2013 setting the high-water mark at $4.755 billion, not adjusted for inflation. In 2019, the last “normal” period at the box office, summer revenues climbed to $4.3 billion, thanks to “Avengers: Endgame” and several other billion-dollar blockbusters. In 2018, popcorn season reached $4.42 billion with “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Incredibles 2” among the highest-grossing movies.
