Cautious Optimism: Box Office Numbers Are Not Horrible (And That's Good)
Box office totals for this year are still 26% behind 2019.
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It's Monday, June 16th. Here's what's happening.
🍿 The Big Picture
So far, the summer box office numbers are... not horrible. And that's good. But is good enough?
On the bright side, Universal's How to Train Your Dragon opened to a very good (some might even say great) $83 million domestic opening weekend, and A24's Materialists opened with an equally impressive $12 million. Lilo and Stitch, Sinners, and A Minecraft were also surprise hits, so maybe we should be happy with what we have so far, and not make perfect the enemy of good.
However, the overall box office totals for this year (while slightly above last year's) are still 26% behind 2019. Plus, with key blockbusters like Warner Bros.' Superman and F1 waiting in the wings, it's way too early to tell much. The Fourth of July weekend seems wide open for Universal once again with Jurassic World: Rebirth. By the time Disney unveils The Fantastic Four: First Steps on July 25, we'll have a pretty clear picture.
In the meantime, I'm cautiously optimistic. And that's good. Right?
🎥 Extra Coverage
One of the rare bright spots when it comes to L.A. film production? Vertical shorts, a rising trend of episodic one to 3 minute shorts. (Hollywood Reporter)
Lionsgate and DirecTV are announcing a new premium channel called the LionsGate Collection. The channel will feature Lionsgate films (of course) but also their TV series, including Weeds and Nurse Jackie. (Deadline)
The city of Chicago is seeing a summer filled with film shoots as well as the usual TV series: Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med. (Reel Chicago)
Roku has announced a partnership with Amazon Ads. The deal will offer advertisers a reported reach of 80% of all connected televisions. (Deadline)
📈 Movie Stock Index
Market Close: Monday, June 16th, 2025
Total Value: $108,490.24
Today's Change: 2,205.67 (2.08%)
Total Gain/Loss (Since 05/12/25): $8,490.22 (8.49%)
Outstanding day for movie stocks today, and our index closed up over 2%. The 7% pop for Warner Bros. Discovery may bode well for fans of the spinoff, and Roku shares roared 10% on news of an Amazon Ads partnership. Theater chains AMC and Cinemark closed down slightly, as the Street seems to be favoring streaming plays.
Disclaimer: The MovieNewsPro Stock Index is a virtual index - there are no actual funds invested. Sector index total value dollar amounts are based on an initial hypothetical investment of $100,000 on May 12th, 2025. We are not licensed investment advisors and our information should not be used as investment advice. Invest wisely.
🏆 Film Festivals
Bentonville Film Festival, US - June 16-22
CineEurope, Spain - June 16-19
Doc Edge Film Festival, New Zealand - June 18-July 31
Frameline San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival, US - June 18-28
Oakville Film Festival, Canada - June 18-25
Raindance Film Festival, UK - June 18-27
Sheffield DocFest, UK - June 18-23
Nepal America International Film Festival, US - June 19-22
Brussels International Film Festival, Belgium - June 20-28
Kimolos International Film Festival, Greece - June 21-25
Mediterrane Film Festival, Malta - June 21-29
London Screenings, UK - June 23-25
Sunny Side Of The Doc, France - June 23-26
Biarritz Film Festival Nouvelles Vagues, France - June 24-29
Docs Ireland, Ireland - June 24-29
Palm Springs ShortFest, US - June 24-30
Nantucket Film Festival, US - June 25-30
Oak Cliff Film Festival, US - June 26-29
FilmFest Munich, Germany - June 27-July 6
📺 Watch This Tonight
Tokyo Story (1953)
Directed by Yasujirō Ozu
Everything about Tokyo Story hits to the message of cherishing our family and friends while we can as life is short. Give your loved ones a hug.
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Disclaimer/Transparency
MovieNewsPro is a film industry news monitoring service. All stories have been previously reported elsewhere and are not exclusive stories to MNP. All information is believed to be accurate at the time of reporting. MovieNewsPro uses a full array of technology to gather information, including machine learning, automation and artificial intelligence throughout its business monitoring, editing and reporting process.
