Summer box office crosses $4 billion for first time since 2023

Hollywood’s summer box office cleared $4 billion in domestic ticket sales on Monday, only the second time the industry has hit that mark since the pandemic upended movie theaters, according to data from Rentrak reported by Variety.

The last time summer moviegoing crossed the $4 billion threshold was 2023, when “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” powered ticket sales to $4.09 billion in the so-called “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. This year’s haul arrived with weeks to spare before Labor Day, putting 2026 on pace for the strongest summer box office since the pre-pandemic summer of 2019.

Sony’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” leads the pack with $655 million domestically, followed by Disney’s “Toy Story 5” at $470 million and Universal’s Christopher Nolan epic “The Odyssey” at $460 million. Two low-budget horror breakouts also cracked the top tier: A24’s “Backrooms” grossed $197 million domestically, and Focus Features’ “Obsession” brought in $263 million. Disney’s “The Devil Wears Prada 2” added $220 million.

Those hits offset a string of costly misfires, including Disney’s “The Mandalorian and Grogu” and live-action “Moana,” DC’s “Supergirl” and Amazon MGM’s “Masters of the Universe.”

Paul Dergarabedian, Rentrak’s head of marketplace trends, said the milestone proves theatrical moviegoing has staying power even after years of streaming competition and pandemic disruption. He noted audiences still favor established franchises but are turning out for original and “challenging” fare too, Forbes reported.

Exhibitors are now eyeing an even bigger prize: the first $10 billion domestic box office year since the pandemic. The Warner Bros. thriller “The End of Oak Street” and Sony’s “Insidious: Out of the Further” close out the summer stretch, with fall releases including Tom Cruise’s “Digger” and “Practical Magic 2” — and holiday-season tentpoles “Dune: Part Three” and “Avengers: Doomsday” — still to come.

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