Australian cinema box office clocks five straight $100m months

Australian cinema has recorded five consecutive months of more than $100 million at the box office for the first time, strengthening the medium's pitch to advertisers as the industry heads into another upfront season.

August delivered $123 million, making it the highest-grossing August on record, according to figures released by Val Morgan Cinema.

It capped a record winter, with June, July and August generating a combined $355 million at the Australian box office, surpassing the previous benchmark set in 2019. More importantly for advertisers, the growth isn't confined to ticket revenue.

Year-to-date cinema admissions are running 21% ahead of the same period last year, giving media buyers another data point to consider as publishers and platforms begin making their cases for 2027 advertising budgets.

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The run has been fuelled by a particularly strong blockbuster slate, including Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which has now passed $81 million locally, becoming the first film since Barbie in 2023 to break through $80 million at the local box office. The Odyssey has meanwhile passed $60 million, putting two major releases in cinemas simultaneously at a scale rarely seen in the Australian market.

Val Morgan Cinema managing director Guy Burbidge said the five-month run showed sustained audience appetite rather than a one-off blockbuster bump.

“Five straight months of $100 million-plus box office has never happened before in this market, and now the biggest winter on record on top of that – it tells you exactly where audience appetite is right now,” Burbidge said.

The figures land at a useful time for cinema advertising, with the broader Australian media market fighting hard for incremental advertiser dollars.

Australia's online advertising market grew 14% to a record $19.8 billion in the year to June, putting further pressure on traditional channels to demonstrate audience growth and attention. Cinema's argument is that the audience is doing exactly that.

“The numbers are clear – cinema is the place for brands to show up right now,” Burbidge said.

“And momentum isn't slowing down – September school holidays are just weeks away where we typically see a roughly 40% lift in admissions.”

The next major test comes over summer, with Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three both currently slated for December 17.