AMC Entertainment posted strong fourth quarter numbers buoyed by Taylor Swift and Beyoncé Concert Films.

The giant theater chain saw revenue jump 11% to $1.1 billion, beating Wall Street’s forecasts. Ebitda triped to $45 millioun and net losses narrowed.

“What is particularly noteworthy is how much AMC benefited from our trailblazing industry leading efforts with our highly successful distribution of two concert movies Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour and Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé,” said CEO Adam Aron.

Noting a diminished box office overall in the fourth quarter year on year, he said, “Literally, all of that increase in AMC’s Revenue and EBITDA is attributable to our having shown these two movies in our theatres in the U.S. and internationally.”

Taylor Swift, Beyoncé Concert Films “Literally” Drove AMC’s Q4, CEO Says – Revenue Growth All “Attributable To Our Having Shown These Two Movies In Our Theatres”

The films also enhanced movie theater ticket sales across the entire industry, he said, repping fully “one ninth” of fourth-quarter domestic industry-wide box office.

“This is a stunning result given that neither of these films were on anyone’s drawing board until mid-year, and that they were the first movies ever distributed by AMC in our entire 103-year history. To that end, our praise for Taylor Swift and Beyoncé Knowles Carter has no limit, and we offer our boundless thanks to these two world class artists for entrusting AMC to collaborate with them as to the theatrical exhibition of their two masterpiece creations.”

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour released in October, grossed $180+ million domestic and $261 million worldwide. Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé opened in Dec. and grossed $33.9 million domestic and $43.9 million worldwide.

That said, “It is hardly a secret that the multi-month writers and actors strikes of 2023 crippled Hollywood for months on end, and seriously hurt theatre operators who were forced to wait for delayed movie titles.

After three years of hard work by one and all, the domestic industry-wide box office finally was in sight of pre-pandemic levels. In the peak of summer, July 2023, it was up 6% to July of 2019.

Clearly, moviegoers flocked to theatres when Hollywood released films in quantity and of quality.

Just think BARBIE, OPPENHEIMER and TAYLOR SWIFT | THE ERAS TOUR among so many others.

But the strikes clearly interrupted that momentum. The fourth quarter domestic industry-wide box office was down 35% versus pre-pandemic 2019.

The January/February 2024 domestic industry-wide box office was down about 45% versus the same months of pre-pandemic 2020.

We point this out, becauseimportantly we think the strike impacts will only be short-term in nature.

AMC believes that the box office will start to strengthen again as soon as this coming month of March, in some of the summer months and especially in the latter third of this year.

He said measures the chain has taken to navigate a temporary setback and reestablish our longer-term recovery trajector include tightened operating hours, mitigated costs, right-sized our theatre portfolio, innovating in merchandise and food and beverage sales, as well as established a new revenue stream with concert film. distribution.