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Will Movie Goers Continue To Fill Theater Seats In 2006?

It seems the cinema is gaining its old standing back. The movies were always a treat for families, children, and couples in every city around the world. But it seems that after taking a back seat to video and DVD rentals, John Fithian, president of the National Assn. Of Theatre Owners believes that the drop in box office sales in past years was due strictly to fewer hit commercial movies being released. Now, with larger-than-life movies, the movie theaters are once again in the driver`s seat.

In 2005, studios like Warner Bros. Pictures released such blockbuster hits as `Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire`, `Charlie And The Chocolate Factory` and `Batman Begins`. Are people truly enjoying the movie theatre experience? Or just interested in these big budget, blockbuster films? This is a question that studio execs have to answer every year. `Every picture costs too much and studios always want to spend less, I`m always fighting that battle,` says producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

The highest grossing pictures of 2005 also had some of the biggest budgets. If the past is any indication of future box office numbers, it appears that studios will continue to produce big budget pictures with the expectation of full theatres across the country. In the early nineties, movie viewers preferred renting new releases and watching them in the comfort of their own home, on state of the art plasma TV`s. But times are changing once again, and more people are going back to the movies.