German box office rebounds in 2023 – The Hollywood Reporter

‘Barbie’

Warner Bros. Pictures

German cinemas made an impressive comeback in 2023, with ticket sales rising 18.5 percent and box office receipts jumping 23.7 percent compared to 2022, according to preliminary results from box office analysis firm ComScore.

The figures, which cover the period from January 5, 2023 to January 3, 2024, show a total of 87.2 million tickets sold in the region with total box office revenues of $940 million (€859 million). That’s slightly lower than Gower Street’s box office estimate for Germany, which pegged the market at $1.01 billion for 2023. Germany’s Federal Film Board, FFA, will publish official figures in early February.

This rise can partly be attributed to inflation, but average ticket prices in Germany rose by just 4.4% last year, well below the country’s overall inflation rate.

Greta Gerwig’s Pink Power Barbiewhich grossed $60.6 million (€55.3 million) in Germany, and is a sequel to James Cameron’s sci-fi. Avatar: Water Roadwhich generated $73.1 million (€66.7 million) of its total German revenue of $148 million in 2023, was the biggest headliner of the year.

Last year’s box office was down 8.2 percent compared to the three-year average before COVID-19, from 2017 to 2019, while admissions were down 18.2 percent.

There were no German hits, although a handful of local films crossed the $10 million mark, including Til Schweiger’s film. Manta, Manta: Legacy ($13 million) Mysterious children’s film Dre dies??? – Erbe de Drachen ($11.6 million) and David Wendt’s crime drama Sun and concrete ($10 million). Overall, box office receipts for domestic releases were down 2.5% compared to an already weak 2022. There was also less local diversity. Comscore reported a 9 percent drop in new domestic releases in Germany compared to 2022 and a nearly 21 percent drop compared to 2019.