Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob says the current movie theater outlook is brightening after disruptions in the supply of Hollywood tentpoles being delayed by the pandemic and the 2023 Los Angeles strikes.
“From talking to the studios, they’re pretty committed to the timing [of movie releases],” Jacob told The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday. His comments came as Cineplex swung to a fourth quarter profit after sharply higher theater attendance in the last three months of 2024 for titles like Gladiator 2, Wicked and Moana 2.
Starting with the fourth installment in the Captain America series, Brave New World, debuting this weekend, Jacob was bullish about the Hollywood film release pipeline for this year and next.
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“As I look into ’25 and into ’26, the slate looks really, really strong on an individual studio basis … You’ve got all kinds of strong movies that are coming out over the next number of months. And I don’t think these are going to change, because they’re pretty committed to getting them released,” Jacob reiterated.
He added the recent Los Angeles wildfires, while leaving some studio employees having lost their homes and in need of alternative housing, has not impacted the production of Hollywood tentpoles. “The movies are made in many different places around North America and the world. And from talking to my studio friends, the lots themselves are still operating,” Jacob said.
During the fourth quarter, Cineplex continued to post gains from Hollywood’s box office rebound out of the pandemic. The company swung to a profit of CAN$3.3 million, or 5 cents per-share, compared to a loss of CAN$9 million, or 14 cents per-share, in the year-earlier period.
For the three months to Dec. 31, 2024, overall revenues rose 15 percent to CAN$362.7 million, as theater attendance jumped 16 percent to 11.1 million patrons at the local multiplex. Cineplex posted a record box office revenues-per-patron of CAN$ 13.26, up 2.8 percent from the same period of 2023 when the concert film Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour played on Cineplex screens.
Jacob also addressed the possible gains for his company from the closure of rival Cinema Guzzo cinema locations in Montreal on Feb. 6. The family-owned theater chain in Quebec had struggled to pay down debt obligations in the face of Quebec Superior Court proceedings brought by creditors.
“We’re seeing some benefits, and that will get better as we move forward,” Jacob said of attendance gains at his own movie theaters in Montreal, depending on their proximity to Cinema Guzzo locations.
