Focus: Super-sized screens, rumble seats draw moviegoers back to blockbusters
24/04/2023 15:44
By Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine
LOS ANGELES, April 24 (Reuters) - Jason Stark's two
young sons talked excitedly for months about seeing the "The
Super Mario Bros. Movie." When the film debuted this month, he
decided to make the experience a special outing.
Stark took a day off from work and drove his boys, ages 9
and 6, about a half-hour from their Connecticut home to watch
the movie at an AMC theater on a 50-foot-high IMAX screen.
"We got lunch, we went to the movies and had a fun day
together," said Stark. "They loved it. They were amazed by how
big (the screen) was."
About 35% of the movie's $204.6 million domestic ticket
sales in the first five days came from enhanced formats,
including oversized screens and 3D projection, according to
distributor Universal Pictures, a unit of Comcast Corp
CMCSA.O .
Film studio and theater executives say audiences returning
to theaters after the COVID-19 pandemic are seeking experiences
compelling enough to coax them off the couch. While overall U.S.
and Canadian ticket sales this year are 16% below 2019,
moviegoers have flocked to films that deliver visual spectacles,
including "Top Gun: Maverick" and "Avatar: The Way of Water."
"Those that are the most enthusiastic about being in
theaters want the biggest, best and most experiential time that
they can possibly have," said Jim Orr, president of domestic
distribution for Universal Pictures.
The growing appeal of giant screens, room-pulsing audio,
moving seats and simulated environmental effects, such as rain
or the scent of pine forests, offer a glimpse of how theaters
aim to thrive in the streaming era. Researcher Comscore predicts
the formats will account for 16.7% of 2023 domestic ticket
sales, up from 9.2% in 2019.
'BUILD IT BIGGER AND BETTER'
That's likely to be a hot topic at the annual CinemaCon
convention that opens Monday in Las Vegas.
"The big conversation is going to be about, 'If they build
it, they will come,'" said Comscore senior media analyst Paul
Dergarabedian. "If you build it bigger and better, even more
people will go to the theater."
And exhibitors have, indeed, been building. The total
number of these premium format screens in North America reached
a new high of 1,940 in 2022, an increase of 4.4% over the prior
year, according to researcher Omdia. Enhanced screenings
typically cost $5 to $7 more than a standard ticket, lifting
revenue for studios and theaters.
Giant screen options include pioneer IMAX and various
premium large formats (PLF) created by theater chains.
For Missouri-based B&B Theatres, about half of a multiplex's
grosses now come from premium formats, compared with 30% before
the pandemic, said Chief Content, Programming and Development
Officer Brock Bagby.
B&B operates 531 screens in 14 states and offers large
format screens with heated recliners, 270-degree Screen X
screens, immersive audio and MX4D seats timed to rumble with the
action.
"Post-COVID, our premium screens are selling better than
ever," Bagby said.
Interest in IMAX is growing around the world, for Hollywood
films and local language movies such as China's "The Wandering
Earth 2," IMAX Corp IMAX.N Chief Executive Richard Gelfond
said.
IMAX has signed 62 agreements for new or upgraded screens so
far in 2023, already more than all of 2022, the company told
Reuters. It expects gross IMAX box office revenue to reach
pre-pandemic levels this year.
Gelfond noted that Hollywood now sends more action-packed,
effects-filled blockbusters to cinemas.
"For these kinds of cultural event films, people want to see
them in IMAX," Gelfond said. "These films have become more like
global cultural experiences, and I think we're benefiting from
that."
As a sign of its importance, Universal's Orr and other
studio distribution executives said they consult Gelfond about
IMAX screen availability before setting movie release dates.
WATCH OUT FOR NAUSEA, WATER
This summer will test audience fervor for enhanced
experiences, said Jeff Bock, analyst for Exhibitor Relations Co.
Large screens will be jammed starting in May with Marvel's
"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" through director Christopher
Nolan's biopic "Oppenheimer" in late July and shark movie "The
Meg 2" in August.
After that, the schedule fills with adult dramas, which do
not offer the same thrill on a big screen, Bock said.
Mateo Osorio chose to see "Super Mario Bros" in different
formats, including Regal's 4DX theater in Orlando, Florida, with
its rolling seats and environmental effects, and later, in IMAX.
"The sound in IMAX was great. The theater was shaking," said
Osorio.
But sometimes the immersive experiences can be a bit much.
"With 'Avatar,' I got really nauseous," said Osorio of
watching the movie in 4DX. "It was non-stop flying in 3D. It was
water. I was soaked the entire time."
(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski and Lisa Richwine;
Editing by Mary Milliken and Diane Craft)
((lisa.richwine@thomsonreuters.com; Follow me on Twitter
@LARichwine; 1-424-434-7324; Reuters Messaging:
lisa.richwine.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))