Everyman cinemas target audience boost from Gladiator II and Wicked

Cinema group Everyman has revealed stronger audiences over the first half of 2024, which it hopes will be boosted by upcoming releases including Gladiator II and Wicked.

Shares in Everyman Media Group moved higher on Wednesday after it told shareholders it is set to meet targets for the year.

The company said it “weathered” pressure on film release schedules from strike action by Hollywood writers and actors to deliver stronger sales.

It added that it has “confidence” in its outlook due to the pipeline of films still to hit cinemas this year.

“With the impact of the strikes beginning to ease, the group expects a strong H2 weighting to the 2024 film slate, with a particularly strong pipeline of titles scheduled for Q4,” the company said.

“These include Joker: Folie a Deux in October; Gladiator II; Paddington in Peru; Wicked and Moana 2 in November; and Mufasa: The Lion King in December.”

Everyman reported that revenues grew by 22.5% to £46.9 million for the six months to June 27, compared with a year earlier.

This was driven by higher admissions, which rose to 1.9 million for the period from 1.6 million last year.

It stressed that growth would have been stronger were it not for delays linked to last year’s strikes by the WGA (Writers Guild of America) and Sag-Aftra (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists).

This included the delayed release of titles such as Deadpool & Wolverine, which was released in July after previously being set for March.

Higher admissions over the half-year were largely due to a “strong awards season” in the first quarter, with Poor Things, The Holdovers and One Life drawing in good audiences.

It also highlighted strong performances linked to Bob Marley: One Love in February and Dune: Part Two in March.

Nevertheless, the company saw its pre-tax losses grow to £4.94 million from a £4.31 million loss a year earlier.

Alex Scrimgeour, chief executive of the firm, said: “Despite weathering the full impact of last year’s actor and writer strikes, we are pleased to report another period of financial and operational progress.

“We achieved strong growth in revenue, increased EBIDTA (earnings before interest, depreciation, tax and amortisation) and record market share, driven by rising demand for Everyman’s unique brand of hospitality.

“The expansion of our footprint continues, with one new venue opened in the period and two more openings to look forward to in the year, further consolidating our position as the market leader in premium cinema.”

Shares in the company were up 3.5% on Wednesday morning.