On Thursday, the Motion Picture Association published its 2020 THEME Report, an annual deep-dive on the state of the theatrical, home and mobile entertainment market. This year’s report details the significant changes during 2020, with clearly defined winners and losers. Direct-to-consumer at-home entertainment exploded, most film studios were able to tread water and exhibitors laboured while coping with widespread COVID restrictions. The return of the great American Drive-in was the feel-good story of the year, amidst the otherwise bleak landscape for exhibition in which box office revenue was off 80% when compared to 2019. Many studios moved to compensate for the lost box office income by redirecting some distribution to VOD providers. As theatre attendance ramps up over the next 6-12 months, the industry will be watching closely to see how studios re-balance their distribution to optimize returns from both theatrical and streaming, especially any adjustments made to the release window for films that debut in theatres.
See also: 2020 Theme Report (Motion Picture Association)