The consistent release of exciting new films with broad consumer appeal, strengthening consumer sentiment and over-indexing of premium formats culminated in the highest monthly box office performance in the COVID era.
Cinemark Holdings, Inc., one of the world’s largest and most influential movie theatre companies, today announced that the June 2022 box office performance was the company’s highest-grossing month since the onset of the pandemic. The steady stream of compelling new content with broad consumer appeal aligned with strengthening moviegoer sentiment and heightened interest in premium out-of-home experiences to drive meaningful performance for Cinemark and the overall industry.
“We have consistently stated that a steady stream of diverse, compelling new film content, along with improving moviegoer sentiment, would be driving forces behind the reignition of theatrical exhibition. We were thrilled to see these two factors play out throughout the month of June,” said Sean Gamble, Cinemark President and CEO. “We commend our studio partners for creating and releasing such high-quality films that were clearly made to be seen on the big screen and resonated with audiences around the world. These films were elevated by the phenomenal work of our entire Cinemark team in delivering a truly cinematic, premium out-of-home entertainment experience to the millions of moviegoers who visited our theatres.”
June took off with remarkably strong ticket sales for Top Gun: Maverick as word of mouth following the film’s premiere drove people to experience it on the big screen multiple times with friends and family. The movie flew past the $1 billion global box office mark by the end of the month and continues to generate tremendous week-to-week results. Moviegoing momentum continued with subsequent releases that appealed to a wide range of moviegoers, including Jurassic World Dominion, Lightyear, Elvis and TheBlack Phone. June also benefited fromstrong holdovers of films such as Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and The Bad Guys.
The combined strength of June’s film releases yielded multiple noteworthy results for the North American industry. For instance, $216MM of box office generated during the weekend of June 10 would have ranked as the fourth highest three-day box office weekend in 2019. Additionally, the weekend of June 17 marked only the fourth time in history that three films generated more than $40 million each at the box office - and the first time since 2013.
This stellar slate came to theatres as moviegoer confidence strengthens and remains at a high point, hovering between 87 and 88 percent of moviegoers indicating they are “very or somewhat comfortable” going to the movies today.[1] Notably, the wide variety of new releases has brought a meaningful range of movie lovers back to theatres. Of those who saw Top Gun: Maverick at a Cinemark theatre on opening weekend, more than 25 percent were returning to the exhibitor for the first time in over a year. Nearly 30 percent of those patrons were over the age of 55, marking notable progress in theatrical exhibition’s broader recovery.
As consumers are craving premium out-of-home experiences, surge in demand to see Hollywood’s newest films in the most immersive way possible has contributed to a meaningful uptick in premium large format ticket purchases, specifically within Cinemark XD auditoriums. XD continues to over-index relative to pre-pandemic performance with Top Gun: Maverick delivering one of Cinemark’s best XD performances for a film of its size, generating more than 25 percent of domestic box office.
Cinemark remains optimistic about the industry’s strong path to recovery as new films continue to hit the big screen through the remainder of this year and beyond.
About Cinemark Holdings, Inc.
Headquartered in Plano, TX, Cinemark (NYSE: CNK) is one of the largest and most influential movie theatre companies in the world. Cinemark’s circuit, comprised of various brands that also include Century, Tinseltown and Rave, operates 520 theatres with 5,849 screens in 42 states domestically and 15 countries throughout South and Central America. Cinemark consistently provides an extraordinary guest experience from the initial ticket purchase to the closing credits, including Movie Club, the industry-leading exhibitor-launched subscription program and the first to reach the one-million-member milestone; the highest Luxury Lounger recliner seat penetration among the major players; XD - the No. 1 exhibitor-brand premium large format; and expansive food and beverage options to further enhance the moviegoing experience. For more information go to https://investors.cinemark.com/
1 NRG survey fielded on Sunday, June 19, 2022
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