Gen Z is returning to theaters and leading a new wave of moviegoers.
After years marked by the dominance of streaming, younger audiences are apparently returning to movie theaters in force.
According to an annual study on cinema consumption trends, released this month by , generation Z and millennials are driving a kind of renaissance of the theater experience: they watch more films per year and spend more per outing than older generations.
Generation Z stands out. According to the survey, carried out with more than 7,000 spectators, 87% of people born after 1997 said they had seen at least one film in the cinema in the last year. It is the highest percentage among all generations. You zoomers They are also the most likely to buy tickets online and reserve food and drinks in advance.
For them, going to the cinema seems to be more than just seeing a movie: it is above all a form of conviviality. The Fandango report points out that this generation prefers to go to the rooms accompanied by friends, valuing the social and collective dimension of the experience. In a return to classic habits, 92% of Gen Z respondents also said they combined going to the movies with a meal out.
The contrast with the baby boomers is significant: of the boomers only 58% went to the cinema at least once in the last year.
The change could be linked not only to the type of films currently produced by studios, but also to broader social factors. Benedict and Hannah Townsend, hosts of the film and television podcast Talk of the Townsends, said young people’s lessened attraction to alcohol and the gradual disappearance of so-called “third spaces” could be making movie theaters more attractive.
As the Internet becomes more ubiquitous and tiresome, Gen Z appears to be seeking out more experiences outside of the home screen. According to Jerramy Hainline, executive vice president at Fandango, these young people strongly value the shared, communal side of watching a movie at the theater.
