If the year's first four months defied all expectations for what Hollywood could do in a recession, this summer delivered some sobering reality.
Through the end of April, domestic box-office receipts leaped 17% while admissions surged nearly 16% from the previous year, according to Hollywood.com. But as the weather turned hot, business cooled: From May 1 through Aug. 31, attendance was down 2.4% from 2008 and 6% from 2007. Summer box-office revenues rose 1.3%, not even enough to account for ticket price inflation, let alone the premiums charged in a growing number of 3-D theaters.
In the midst of the economic crisis, the best that studios could argue is that almost flat is the new up.
"To be marginally down on attendance and up on box-office at a time when so many other industries are struggling is a great comment on our business," said Adam Fogelson, president of marketing and distribution at Universal Pictures.
If there was one lesson the studios learned -- often the hard way -- it was that audiences were in the mood to be amazed and to laugh. Big-budget spectacles like "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and gut-busting comedies like "The Hangover" ruled the season.
"It's definitely true in a time of recession that people are looking for an escape, to be distracted, to be entertained and to laugh," said Rob Moore, vice chairman of Paramount Pictures.
On the flip side, adult dramas ("The Taking of Pelham 123" and "Public Enemies") and neither-fish-nor-fowl comedies ("Funny People" and "Land of the Lost") labored to cover their production costs.
"Adult dramas are more vulnerable than ever before in this business," said Fogelson, whose studio was stung by several flops in the genre, including this spring's "State of Play" and "Duplicity."
The other victim of the summer was A-list stars, who studios used to think could "open" a movie on their names alone. Eddie Murphy in a family comedy used to seem like box-office gold, but "Imagine That" tanked. Jack Black wasn't enough to light a fire under "Year One" -- and neither was Adam Sandler in "Funny People" nor Will Ferrell in "Land of the Lost," one of the season's biggest failures.
"This was not a star-driven summer," said Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Group. As a result, all studios are now rethinking their commitment to $20-million actor paydays.
