Cinema’s comeback builds as Australian box office hits historic $100M run

Australia’s cinema recovery is gathering pace, with the local box office topping $100 million for three consecutive months for the first time in history.

April, May and June each surpassed $100 million at the Australian box office, capping off a strong first half for the category and pointing to renewed audience demand for theatrical releases.

The milestone comes as cinema admissions in Australia rose 16% year-on-year across the first half of 2026.

It also follows fresh Guideline SMI data showing cinema ad spend rose 22.6% in May, making it one of the strongest-performing media channels for the month as agency bookings came close to returning to growth.

The box office run has been driven by a broad slate of franchise films, event cinema and original content, including Wuthering Heights, Project Hail Mary, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie and The Devil Wears Prada 2.

Musical biopic Michael has also become the highest-grossing film of the year to date.

Momentum has continued over the past fortnight with the release of Toy Story 5 and Minions & Monsters, further lifting box office performance ahead of the July school holiday period.

The second half of 2026 is expected to bring another wave of major releases, including the live-action Moana, Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Val Morgan Cinema managing director Guy Burbidge said the three-month run showed the strength of cinemagoing in Australia.

“Three consecutive $100M+ months is a landmark achievement and proves just how strongly Aussies love watching movies at the cinema,” Burbidge said.

“These record-breaking numbers are a result of not just the best content on the planet, but a sustained investment in the cinema experience itself, with the expansion of IMAX across Australia, alongside premium screen formats such ScreenX and HOYTS’ newly introduced APEX screens - truly signalling the strength of the industry.

“Demand for immersive entertainment is at an all-time high, and these formats deliver experiences audiences can’t get anywhere else.”

Burbidge said the release pipeline remained strong heading into the second half of the year and into 2027.

“The depth of our slate is incredibly strong, with a diverse and high-quality pipeline of releases set to carry this momentum through the remainder of the year and into 2027,” he said.

The result gives cinema operators and advertisers a stronger story to take to market, with box office growth, admissions momentum and rising ad spend all pointing in the same direction.