If you’re a film fan, you’ll be aware the last few years have been a bumpy time for the movie industry. Huge tentpole movies are coming out in quick succession, hoping to attract the attention of swathes of audiences, and many are really struggling to get bums on seats.
This year, what seemed like sure fire hits on paper, have not been sure fire hits in reality. Masters of the Universe struggled, Supergirl did too, and a number of the summer blockbusters haven’t performed as well as expected.
There can be many reasons why a film underperforms at the box office, from ticket prices, to bad reviews, to poor timing (playing opposite the World Cup didn’t help), but when a significant number of films fall short, you have to wonder what the problem is. However, the reason why one film fails could be entirely different to why another one does, so it’s important to remember there’s not just a ‘one size fits all’ kind of answer to the problem.
But what can be helpful is to look at the movies which have performed well. This can give an indication as to what audiences are responding to, and may be able to provide reasons as to why these movies attracted attention.
Audiences are still going to the cinema, and they are helping studios achieve box office hits, they just seem to be a bit more selective in their choices. So, maybe if we look at the movies which are doing well, it will provide a clearer picture as to why some films are failing.
OK, so if we look at some of the more successful pictures this year we have hits such as: Toy Story 5, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, The Odyssey, Michael, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Project Hail Mary, The Devil Wears Prada 2, Backrooms, Hoppers, Obsession, and Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. Although it is worth pointing out, that while The Mandalorian and Grogu is one of the more successful movies of 2026, it did underperform for a Star Wars film.
Anyway, from these films a few patterns begin to form. First and foremost, children’s movies are still doing well.
Toy Story 5, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, and Hoppers have all been hits. This tells us that parents are still taking children to the cinema, especially for animated movies.
And in the case of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, it’s worth noting that children’s movies based on video games seem to be doing well at present. Last year, one of the most successful movies of 2025 was A Minecraft Movie which did big business at the box office.
This doesn’t mean all movies based on video games are going to be a hit, as many adult-orientated adaptations have flopped. However, ones which have specific youth appeal seem to be performing great.
So, this tells us that kids movies do well, and movies based on video games aimed at a younger demographic do well. But it also tells us there is a strong possibility that the marketing for these movies is doing what it should.
These films aren’t just attracting young audiences out of nowhere. Whether it is adverts on YouTube, cast members popping up on kids’ TV shows, or social media platforms working their magic, the promotion for these movies is hitting the intending targets, which is a.) kids, and b.) their parents.
Moving away from children’s films, and horror is currently a very hot commodity. You only need to look at the 2026 release schedule to see how many horror movies fill up the spaces.
Last year, Weapons and Sinners were huge hits, both critically and commercially. Weapons took home an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, while Sinners won four Academy Awards, including Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and Best Original Score.
The success of these pictures, as well as a number of horrors from recent years, has demonstrated that audiences are interested in this genre. It also helps that horror movies tend to have lower budgets than many of the big blockbusters, so the return on investment is pretty substantial, especially when you get a runaway hit.
Obsession and Backrooms both fit into the category of runaway hits. However, there’s something else in play here.
Obsession benefitted from great word of mouth, which tended to spread like wildfire on social media. Meanwhile, Backrooms has connections to video games (bringing in youth interest), and also got a very positive response online.
The next couple of hits, The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, have one thing in common – namely the involvement of actors Tom Holland and Zendaya. Both are very popular actors, who are well-liked, and appeal to young audiences, so this could explain some of the popularity of these films.
However, the likelihood here is to do with branding. Spider-Man is a huge brand, recognised the world over, and audiences will show up for new Spidey films; while The Odyssey is a Christopher Nolan film and audiences tend to make an effort for his movies, as they know the end product is going to be worth the ticket price.
What we have here are two genuine ‘event’ movies. Audiences want to see these films as soon as they can, because they don’t want to miss out on something worthwhile.
Audiences showed up for Deadpool & Wolverine in 2024 because the combination of the two characters was an event. Likewise, audiences went to see Barbie in 2023 because that too felt like an event – and one which was boosted by the whole ‘Barbenheimer’ thing when paired with Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer.
Looking at the rest of the box office hits of 2026, and The Devil Wears Prada 2 did well because the first film is generally well regarded, by critics and audiences alike, and this sequel was 20 years in the making. Meanwhile, Michael did well because once upon a time Michael Jackson was the biggest pop star on the planet and his fanbase is still going strong.
As for Project Hail Mary, this one benefitted from great word of mouth, both online and in person, plus it is based on a book by Andy Weir. The same Andy Weir who wrote The Martian, which was successfully adapted for film in 2015.
I’d argue that Project Hail Mary is sort of an anomaly amongst the high earners of 2026, simply because on paper it doesn’t seem the sure fire hit that some of the other movies are. You certainly wouldn’t expect it to outperform Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, yet it did.
And speaking of Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, the film is one of the higher earning movies of the year, this is true, however, it didn’t pull in the crowds like many of the Star Wars films of the past. So there is appeal here, but the appeal is waning, perhaps because audiences don’t feel like it is an event picture.
So, what does any of this tell us, and how does it help us decipher why some of the big movies failed?
Well, outside of horror, which is hot right now, the films which have performed well this year have had strong social media presences or good word of mouth, and the marketing seems to have worked as intended. If I was to offer up a reason why I personally believe Masters of the Universe fell short at the box office (but has done very well on streaming), it is because in my opinion the marketing missed the mark.
I don’t believe that audiences are disinterested in Masters, or Supergirl, or even The Mandalorian, I just think people aren’t being given a good enough reason to go and watch these movies at the cinema. For years Hollywood has worked off the basis of putting out trailers, and presuming people will just turn up.
This isn’t working. Sure it works with some movies, but not all of them.
If movie studios want their films to be hits, they have to make audiences want to leave their house. Studios have spent the past few years convincing people to stay at home to stream films, yet at the same time they want us all to go to the cinema.
Well, people aren’t going to go to the cinema unless you give them reason. People will turn out for Christopher Nolan, because they know they will have a good experience, and they will take their kids to see the latest movie about a computer game because they know their kids will have a good time.
One of the reasons the Marvel Cinematic Universe did so well for a decade is because audiences knew MCU films were a guaranteed good time. The reason interest levels have dipped in some MCU releases is because the quality dipped and audiences aren’t so confident about having a good time (plus they can watch the films on Disney+).
The movie industry is having a turbulent time, but it’s not necessarily helping itself. The studios need to convince audiences there is a reason to go to the cinema, and they need to find new ways to target those audiences.
Just sticking out a trailer is lazy. Sticking out a film which looks like every other movie is also lazy. And presuming audiences will just show up is short-sighted.
The industry needs to look at what worked, rather than what didn’t, and then consider the reasons why these films pulled in punters when others failed to do the same. Marketing and targeting the right audience is a factor here, as is the end product.
Make people care. Make people want to leave the house to watch movies.
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