Big Deal! Who Suffers?
Great question. With the aforementioned streaming services continuing to create new content while Hollywood revises the same characters repeatedly, moviegoers are opting to stay at home. Theaters cannot pull in the same numbers as they once did at the height of their powers. In the 1990s, a family of four could hit the theaters for about $6 ahead and enjoy soda and popcorn. It was an inexpensive night out that many families enjoyed. Today, that same family of four is spending well over $100 to get in the door and enjoy some movie snacks. When a family can stream movies at home or enjoy all the outstanding miniseries that have been made over the past few years, why would they bother to spend the dough? For what it’s worth, the cost of earning popcorn at home is likely somewhere in the range of .37 to .50 as opposed to $10.
When the movies showing are just remakes of the years past, and the cost to see them is more than that of a steak dinner, the world can expect to see fewer and fewer theaters until they go the way of Blockbuster.
A Challenge for Hollywood
Hey, Hollywood? How about you consider trying. Trying what? Try trying. There are content creators all over the world who are hard-working and clever. They make new content each and every day. Would it be so tough to find the next Tik Tok or YouTube star and engage them to create something feature-length? Look at it this way: Those are the people who will one day put your industry to bed for good. Why not reach out and engage them now and see what that evolves into? If it is money you are after, and of course, it is money you are after, please don’t forget that there are ways to make it while also putting out fun, new content.