Boxoffice - August 2019

WHITE PAPER
WHY AUDIENCES ABOVE 50 SHOULD NO LONGER BE IGNORED
With disposable cash in their pockets and a stronger culture of moviegoing, it’s not
surprising that audiences above 50 go to the movies more than any other segment. What
is somewhat more surprising is the lack of films targeting such an important segment.
MM
18
14
10
6
1
Mar. 2
2018
Avengers:
Infinity War
• The 50+ age group represented a majority audience for musicals/musical dramas (A Star
Is Born, 56.2%; Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, 60.3%; Bohemian Rhapsody, 52.4%), dramas
(The Mule, 70%; Green Book, 77.5%), and senior films (Book Club, 86.6%).
• Moviegoers above 50 were responsible for on average 8.8 million admissions every week,
with a peak of 15 million and a low of 6 million.
Audience
Breakdown of
Top 30 Most
Popular Films
for 50+
50 +
May 4
2018
Other
Solo
CHART
BOXOFFICE PROFILE—WEBEDIA MOVIES PRO
SOURCE
VERTIGO RESEARCH
US Weekly Admissions by Age
March 2018 to February 2019
Incredibles 2
Mamma Mia!
Ocean’s 8
Here We Go Again
Mission: Impossible
–Fallout
July 6
2018
• Only 10 out of the 30 most popular films had a majority of moviegoers above 50. With a
very small share of the cast in these films above the age of 50, the correlation between
higher representation and higher turnout is the strongest out of all the examined segments.
• On average, only 25% of the cast in the top 30 was age 50 or above.
• The proportion almost doubles, reaching 49%, for films in which the 50+ age group
represents the majority audience.
Sept. 7
2018
Nov. 9
2018
3–14 15–24 25–49 50+
Chart: Boxoffice Profile - Webedia Movies Pro / Source: Vertigo Research
Fantastic Aquaman
Beasts: The
Crimes of
Grindelwald
Bohemian
The Mule
Rhapsody
Jan. 11
2019
Feb. 22
2019
THE
DIVERSITY
DRIVE
Marine Suttle, SVP, chief product
officer at Webedia Movies Pro, went
in-depth about the importance of diversity
and representation in reaching
out to underserved audiences.
Much has been written about how
streaming services—particularly Netflix—are
ramping up their efforts with
regard to inclusivity and diversity,
specifically for mid-budget romantic
comedies like Always Be My Maybe and
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. With
so much of the theatrical industry now
concentrated on big-budget tentpoles,
are you optimistic about the cinema
industry’s ability to catch up with its
streaming counterparts when it comes
to these smaller, more diverse films?
The trend of tentpoles is definitely in
full swing, and that’s despite the “franchise
fatigue” that’s hitting audiences. But
I think that the current climate in the
industry, especially increased consolidation,
creates opportunities for studios that
do not necessarily have the IPs to produce
big tentpoles to differentiate themselves
with original, diverse films. Newer players
like A24, Neon, and Blumhouse Productions
seem to be doing that and reaping
critical and commercial benefits, but
bigger studios have begun to adopt that
strategy as well. For example, Warner
Bros.’ fall lineup contains only two films
based on preexisting IPs; all the rest are
going to be original stories. And although
it is true that streaming platforms have
spearheaded inclusivity and diversity, I
believe that much of the debate on the
competition between streaming platforms
and moviegoing is misplaced. I don’t
really think that the cinema industry has
“catching-up” to do, simply because more
and more studies show that consumption
of streaming platforms and consumption
of movies at the theater are complementary
rather than competitive.
92 AUGUST 2019