With the successive release of several major Hollywood stars, including new films Indiana Jones And Impossible MissionThe month of July is looking very promising for Quebec cinema owners.
• Also read: “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”: A nostalgic tribute to Indiana Jones
• Also read: “Mission: Impossible 7”, the hit of the summer? The first reviews are unanimous
Will the summer of 2023 officially herald the return to normality of cinema attendance? One thing is for sure, the programming offered by Hollywood for the month of July has theater owners dreaming of attendance levels comparable to those before the pandemic.
“It’s nice to see that,” says Association of Quebec Cinema Owners Co-President Éric Bouchard.
“We really have a great line-up this summer. That makes us very optimistic.”
Cinema owners were already hoping for this return to normality last year with the end of the health restrictions. But after a roaring start to the summer, fueled by the phenomenal success of Top Gun: Maverick, dark room attendance began to plummet from late July due to a lack of Hollywood firsts.
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Other top gun?
The situation is different this year. No fewer than four Hollywood blockbusters should hit our screens by the end of July. It kicks off this weekend with the release of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the final installment of the legendary Harrison Ford in the costume of the famed archaeologist.
Two weeks later, it’s Tom Cruise’s turn to storm the cinemas again with the seventh part of the popular Mission: Impossible saga.
Then, on July 21, two of the most intriguing films of the summer will be shown: Barbie, the satirical comedy by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird), inspired by the cult doll of the same name, and Oppenheimer, the new historical drama by Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight, Tenet ) about the life of the inventor of the atomic bomb.
Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
While he has high hopes for each of these four films, Éric Bouchard says he’s particularly excited to see Tom Cruise break the box office for the second summer in a row.
“I don’t think that with Mission: Impossible 7, we’re immune to a Top Gun: Maverick hit,” says Mr. Bouchard. People liked “Top Gun” so much last year that they might have wanted to see Tom Cruise’s new performance in theaters.”