UK and Ireland box office takings in 2024 hold steady, but sequels dominate the top ten chart for the year. More here.
The official numbers are in for UK cinema takings in 2024, and for the second time since the first lockdowns of 2020, the total number eclipsed the £1bn mark. This is still a fair way down from the £1.35bn of 2019, but a fair way up from the £597m of 2021.
According to official numbers released by Comscore in the UK, the number of new cinema releases increased over 2023, from 1015 to 1114, and the number of what are declared ‘saturation’ releases (think: shedloads of screens) was up from 176 to 200 (higher even than 2019).
The total take in cinemas was a smidge down on 2023, falling around £3m, which in the grand scheme of things is negligible when the overall number is measured in billions. Very cautious optimism might even be allowed.
Furthermore, the official top ten at the UK and Irish box office – measured from 5th January 2024 to 2nd January 2025 – has been tallied. And here are the numbers, definitely not copy and pasted from the official Comscore report.
1. Inside Out 2 (Disney): £59.2m
2. Deadpool & Wolverine (Disney): £57.5m
3. Wicked (Universal): £55.6m – still on release
4. Despicable Me 4 (Universal): £48.6m
5. Dune: Part II (Warner Bros): £39.6m
6. Moana 2 (Disney): £36.4m – still on release
7. Paddington In Peru (Studiocanal): £34.2m – still on release
8. Gladiator II (Paramount): £31.0m – still on release
9. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (Warner Bros): £26.3m
10. Kung Fu Panda 4 (Universal): £22.1m
A couple of obvious notes there. Firstly, by the time Wicked has completed its theatrical run, there’s a sporting chance it might end up being the UK’s number one movie at the box office based on 2024 releases (Sonic The Hedgehog 3 and Mufasa: The Lion King are likely to have broken into the chart too). Secondly, nine of those ten films are sequels.
Comscore also has a chart for the top 15 UK films at the box office in 2024. And this is really quite uplifting..
1. Paddington In Peru (Studiocanal): £34.2m – still on release
2. Gladiator II (Paramount): £31.0m – still on release
3. Wonka (Warner Bros): £14.2m in 2024 (£63.5m lifetime)
4. Alien: Romulus (Disney): £13.3m
5. Back To Black (Studiocanal): £12.3m
6. One Life (Warner Bros): £10.0m
7. Wicked Little Letters (Studiocanal): £9.6m
8. The Garfield Movie (Sony): £9.0m
9. Poor Things (Disney): £7.5m
10. Civil War (Entertainment): £6.4m
11. Argylle (Universal): £5.9m
12. Conclave (Black Bear): £5.8m – still on release
13. All Of Us Strangers (Disney): £5.3m
14. Lee (Studiocanal): £4.4m
15. Small Things Like These (Lionsgate): £4.0m – still on release
Accepting that few regard Alien: Romulus and The Garfield Movie as British films, it’s lovely to see films such as Small Things Like These, Lee and All Of Us Strangers able to make an impact in cinemas.
Long may that continue…
EDITOR’S NOTE: A previous version of this article claimed 2024’s UK box office had eclipsed £10bn. This was, regrettably, a massive porky – it eclipsed £1bn.
