It’s not like it’s news that 2024 has been off to a rough start. We knew because of the SAG and WGA strikes last year that the release calendar was going to be heavily impacted. Ticket sales are down more than 20% compared to 2023 thus far, when the domestic box office topped $9 billion for the year. That number was encouraging, but even that was far below pre-pandemic levels when the annual total was regularly $10 billion or more. The industry can ill-afford another turn in the wrong direction. Yet, here we are, with the summer off to a bad start and little hope on the horizon.

This upcoming weekend sees the release of “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.” It’s a movie that should do well enough, with tracking suggesting an opening weekend in the $55 to $60 million range. But that’s not enough to make up for a lack of a Marvel movie clearing well over $100 million to kick off the summer, which is what we’ve become accustomed to. In fact, we don’t have a movie on the calendar that looks like it can clear $100 million out of the gate until “Despicable Me 4” arrives in the first weekend of July. From there, the industry has its hopes pinned on “Deadpool & Wolverine,” especially since Sony recently delayed “Kraven the Hunter” to December.

That’s not what we’re used to summer release schedules looking like. Now, theaters are hoping against hope that “The Garfield Movie” and play like “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” did last year. That’s unlikely. We’re left to hope that George Miller’s “Furiosa” can make more than “Mad Max: Fury Road” did nearly a decade ago. That would be very nice. Even if those things happen, we’re still a far cry from where we need to be to have a healthy, reliable theatrical marketplace. So, what’s Hollywood to do? What are theater owners to do?