Greg Marcus, head of Marcus Theater, jokes about company’s new method of predicting box office: ‘We’re going to have a show’

Marcus Corp. CEO Greg Marcus joked that a Milwaukee theater owner had found a new way to predict box office numbers.

“We’re going to have a session next week to figure out what the theater world is going to look like next year,” Marcus said during the company’s third-quarter earnings conference call with Wall Street analysts when asked about his 2024 outlook. “We don’t know that! We have no idea. We don’t even know when we know what’s coming.”

Exhibitors and others in the industry have been constantly destabilized this year by the impact of the overlapping strikes by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, the latter of which is still ongoing. The labor stoppage led to a number of changes to film production and release schedules. Combined with the ongoing Covid recovery and a series of economic strains, the sector has experienced a whirlwind of unpredictable results in recent months, rising from last summer’s highs. Barbenheimer too many lackluster performances for a string of loss-making releases.

“It all depends on the number of films released,” Marcus said. “And as you know, Hollywood doesn’t really release that number.” “There was some movement. We know that Dune 2 postponed until next year. Well, it will fill a small hole. This left us with a small gap [in fall 2023] but suddenly Taylor Swift appeared. She rode a horse to save the day.”

Swift’s concert film debuted as the second-biggest October film of all time, despite being broadcast outside the studio system.

According to Marcus, about 15% fewer films were released in theaters in 2023 than before the pandemic, and box office revenues fell accordingly. Nevertheless, he sees further growth ahead. “When the pipeline is filled again, the company will come back,” he said.

Marcus was asked several times during the call about M&A amid widespread turmoil in the exhibition sector. He said “opportunities have arisen” but the company does not find them compelling. A potential takeover target, he said, “must have good economic conditions, and we’re not seeing the economic conditions we want to see.” … It feels good to say we have some size, but we’d rather have more cash flow. We will be patient and deliberate, as we always have been, and when we see the opportunities, we will move forward.”