By Gavin Boyle
According to presenters at CinemaCon, movie theaters want to expand their offerings as they attempt to cultivate an experience that provide more than just the movie.
“Nowadays, we’re trying to get dwell time,” Aaron Jenks with Paradigm Design told Movieguide®. “So instead of trying to get people in and out quickly, you want people to stay and linger and do more things with revenue streams. So you’re going to have maybe some hospitality areas, maybe a bar, maybe a dine-in movie theater. So we’re trying to curate the whole space so everything we touch is intentional.”
“And as we lead people into the space and people can see what’s going on beyond the space and the kids might want to go over there and the adults might want to go bowling or something like that, and then they might go see a movie afterwards,” he continued. “So it’s all part of the experience now instead of just a movie and then going somewhere else for dinner…Now, with everyone stuck in their screens all the time, they do desire to get out there and spend more time with people. Even my kids, surprisingly, might want to get off Instagram and go do that.”
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The desire for premium experiences has been the theater industry’s leading area of growth since the pandemic. Along with unique experiences outside of the actual theater, consumers tend to choose premium theaters, with Imax and Dolby Cinemas ticket sales continuing to surge in popularity.
“The second quarter offered strong evidence that we are at an inflection point in our business; we are on a tear with strong system sales activity,” Imax CEO Rich Gelfond said during a 2024 Q2 report. “Our system installations are up significantly, and the slate through 2026 is as strong as we’ve ever seen.”
Meanwhile, younger audiences are flocking to theaters as they look for places to connect with others and interact off of their devices.
“While there has been a perception that Gen Z is less engaged with theatrical moviegoing, our data shows that their momentum has been building,” said Jerramy Hainline, an executive at Fandango. “What’s especially notable is how strongly they value the shared, communal aspect of the experience, reinforcing that theaters continue to play an important role as a social destination for younger audiences.”
As costs to visit theaters continue to rise, experiences will need to become more premium to justify increasing prices. Consumers can expect to see more unique moviegoing experiences in the coming years as theaters look to draw audiences.
Read Next: Is the Fate of Movies in the Hands of Gen Z?
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