Marcus CEO On Balancing Movie Attendance, The Industry’s “North Star,” With Discounts That Ding Average Ticket Prices

“We in the theater business are really focused on attendance, because that drives so much other stuff,” said Greg Marcus, describing how initiatives like Discount Tuesday lure people off the couch and out to the movies.

But, he acknowledged, setting ticket prices is complex.

“We are watching our pricing strategy very, very intently,” he told analysts on a call after earnings. “We really got pretty aggressive … with our pricing. And so, we’re sort of triangulating. Trying to find the right price is something we learn in the hotel business that we apply to the theater business. What’s the right price for the right person at the right time? That’s revenue management. And we continue to refine that.”

Milwaukee-based Marcus Corp. owns a hotel chain as well as a theater circuit.

The latter reported total revenues of $121.2 million for the last quarter of 2024, up 23% from the year before on the strength of Wicked, Moana 2, The Wild Robot, Gladiator II, Venom: The Last Dance and more.

Operating income of $3.3 million vs $3.5 million for the same period of fiscal 2023, hit by $6.4 million of noncash impairment charges. But adjusted profit of $23.7 million jumped 61.3%.

Admission revenues rose 15.4%.

Attendance grew 29%. Average ticket price dipped 10.6% — attributable to the positive impact of higher ticket prices for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, and from pricing promotions designed to encourage moviegoing and drive long-term attendance growth.

That’s been a focus of theater chains to drive audiences into seats post-Covid.

In November 2024, Marcus Theatres introduced Marcus Movie Club. For $9.99 per month, moviegoers who join Marcus Movie Club will receive a credit to see any 2D movie each month, get a 20% food and beverage discount, have unlimited access to additional tickets for $9.99, and pay no digital convenience fees. Early membership sales of Marcus Movie Club have been encouraging, with over 30% of customers choosing annual memberships.

Marcus and other exhibitors have been calling 2024 a tale of two cities with the second half wildly outperforming the first with four of the year’s five top performing films. The chain’s President Mark Gramz said the slate played particularly well with audiences in its markets, building momentum that continued through the holiday season and into 2025.

Upcoming, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, Jurassic World: Rebirth, Superman: Legacy, F1, Wicked 2 and Avatar: Fire and Ash among others.