Movie Theaters Bounce Back: What’s Behind the 2018 Rebound

Reports of the death of movies are greatly exaggerated.

The exhibition business came roaring back in 2018, as blockbusters such as “Black Panther,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” powered ticket sales to record levels. The domestic box office hit a new high-water mark of $11.5 billion and global revenues also have a chance of reaching new heights if Christmas releases such as “Aquaman” and “Mary Poppins Returns” can ring in the new year in style.

Studios and theater owners are closing out the year in a much more optimistic frame of mind, after being written off in 2017 as creaky anachronisms that were being rapidly surpassed by more agile streaming players such as Netflix and Amazon. So why did moviegoers return to theaters in force over the last 12 months?