The quarter ended
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When pop star Swift shocked the world in August, revealing plans to bring a theatrical movie of her hit concert The Eras tour to cinemas in October, it was welcome news for theatres — a view Cineplex chief executive
He called 2024 "undeniably the year of
"Everybody was kind of worried about where our business was going and with the lack of content due to the strikes, (Swift's film) was a great injection of an event that brought our guests out in a big way," he later said in an interview.
Based on the box office, the film was Cineplex's No. 1 movie in the fourth quarter and the industry’s biggest concert film of all time.
It contributed toCineplex's fourth-quarter revenue ticking up to
Box office revenue per patron was
The increase in concession revenue per patron came as theatre attendance rose to 9.6 million compared with 9.2 million a year earlier.
Jacob believes audiences will continue to flock to theatres as
Cineplex will also show much-anticipated movies like "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," "The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim," "Despicable Me 4" and "Mufasa: The Lion King" later this year.
With several of those titles coming in the latter months of 2024, Jacob said "the fourth quarter at this point looks very strong compared to 2023."
Cineplex ended 2023 screening "Renaissance: A Film by
"When we entered the quarter, I was quite nervous because I was counting on 'Wonka' and 'Aquaman' and there wasn't a lot of depth, so I was a little worried, but I think we turned out ending the quarter in a reasonably strong fashion," Jacob said.
In the weeks following the quarter's end, Cineplex pulled South Indian film "Malaikottai Vaaliban" from theatres after four drive-by shootings at theatres throughout the
Cineplex's dedication to international programming, which makes up 10 per cent of its annual box office revenues compared with four per cent at many of its counterparts, will not waver, Jacob said.
"We just have to look at where we play what we do and we are working very closely with the authorities," Jacob said, noting that the most important thing is the safety of staff and moviegoers.
"Did it hurt us financially? Yes, but to me, it's more important to be well aware of what is happening in our locations."
The company's next quarter will cover a refinancing plan it announced Thursday to improve its financial flexibility and reduce the dilutive impact of its convertible debentures.
A case against the
On the analyst call, Jacob called the allegations "unfounded" and said Cineplex will "vigorously defend" itself against class actions linked to the fee.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published
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