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Box office awaits rebound five years after COVID-19: Did 2023 Hollywood strikes make it worse for theater business?
Five years after COVID-19 shut theaters, the box office is still struggling, with 2023 labor strikes adding to the woes. Can upcoming blockbusters revive the theatrical business?
We did a story yesterday, March 17, on March 14-16 being the weakest box office weekend of 2025 in the USA, which brought us to the topic of the theatrical business still struggling five years after the COVID-19 pandemic led to shutdowns. The 2023 Hollywood labor strikes, which lasted for months, delaying multiple titles, compounded the issue. In this article, we intend to forecast when things will go back to normal for the sector. But before that, here’s a look at what we spoke about in the article we referenced to start this piece.
Multiple new releases and holdover offerings invited viewers to theaters this past Friday through Sunday, but the audience turnout was the poorest of the year yet. Despite highly anticipated productions like Captain America: Brave New World and Mickey 17 playing on the silver screens, they fell behind debutant, relatively lesser-talked-about entries like Novocaine and Black Bag. Collectively, these films posted a USD 54.7 million trade.
For those interested, Captain America 4 sees Anthony Mackie officially taking on the titular superhero’s mantle after the departure of Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers. Mickey 17, directed by Bong Joon Ho and starring Robert Pattinson, is a science fiction black comedy that generated much buzz due to it being the Academy Award-winning filmmaker’s big-screen comeback. Brave New World was released on February 14, while Mickey 17 made its way to theaters on March 7.
Novocaine, for the unfamiliar, stars Jack Quaid as a person incapable of feeling pain due to a genetic error. Black Bag stars Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender as spies.
While none of these offerings managed to give the struggling theatrical business a boost, exhibitors are holding high hopes for this Friday’s release, Snow White, a live-action remake by Disney starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot. Expectations are also massive for the April 4 release Minecraft: The Movie, with Jason Momoa in the lead role. Both films are anticipated to post a domestic debut weekend in the range of USD 60-65 million each, which is monumental.
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, Jurassic World: Rebirth, Lilo & Stitch, and other blockbuster hopefuls are also queued for a spring and summer release, giving theater owners some strength to overlook whatever box office hits came their way in the opening trimester of the year.
Not everything has struggled to make money though. China’s smash hit Ne Zha 2 has grossed USD 2.08 billion since its late January release. However, its achievement is concentrated in its home market alone, which contributed USD 2.04 billion to the total business. Since the production’s release in the North American region is limited, it has not contributed enormously to the box office we are discussing here.
Nevertheless, looking forward, which of the above-listed films are you excited to catch in theaters? Do let us know.
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