Boxoffice Podcast

This week on the Boxoffice podcast, co-hosts Daniel Loria, Rebecca Pahle, and Chad Kennerk cover the latest industry news and preview Sony’s 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Then in the feature segment, Daniel speaks with Dine-In Cinema Summit founders Amy and Matt Mader of Venue Valet to preview this year’s show happening February 2-6 in Austin, TX. 

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What to Listen For
00:00 Intro
01:07 Weekend Box Office: Primate Overperforms
02:41 Repertory Cinema & Theatrical Experiences
06:18 Remembering Colleen Barstow
08:27 Industry Leadership Updates
10:34 ICTA North America Cinema Awards
12:09 Blue Ribbon Awards Relaunch
14:11 Box Office Outlook & Horror Trends
16:22 28 Years Later Franchise Discussion
21:46 Dine-In Cinema Summit Interview Begins
23:18 Evolution of the Dine-In Cinema Summit
26:41 Hospitality & Guest Experience in Cinemas
29:44 “Let’s Adapt” Programming & Diversification
33:06 Alternative Content & FEC Strategies
37:58 Food, Beverage & Kitchen Operations
39:12 Battle of the Brands Cook-Off
41:36 Operations, Pricing & Data Insights
45:02 Summit Sponsors & Industry Support
48:21 Why the Summit Matters Before CinemaCon
50:37 Registration Details & Final Takeaways
51:18 Closing Remarks & Subscribe CTA

This week on the Boxoffice podcast, presented by AgileTix, co-hosts Daniel Loria and Rebecca Pahle cover the latest industry news and discuss the end-of-year box office performance. In the feature segment, Rebecca Pahle speaks with Shane Burkett (Director of Strategic Marketing) and Tanya Key (Senior Account Executive) of Agile Ticketing on the many ways in which technological solutions can help turn the occasional cinemagoer into a loyal customer.

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What to Listen For
00:00 Intro 
03:00 2025 Box Office Ends at $8.87B and Misses $9B Goal
04:38 Disney Crosses $6B as Avatar: Fire and Ash Hits $1B
05:15 Zootopia 2 Becomes the Top Hollywood Release Ever in China
06:07 Avatar’s Domestic Decline and International Strength
08:07 Strong Start to 2026 Despite a Slower January Slate
13:00 Agile Ticketing Interview Begins
16:06 The Rise of Event Programming and Custom Cinema Experiences
24:07 Loyalty Programs and Data-Driven Patron Engagement
33:18 Pre-Ordering Concessions and Reducing In-Theater Friction
36:02 Episode Wrap-Up and What’s Next

Join us for our annual box office preview episode, as we look ahead to some of the most anticipated movies and biggest potential hits of 2026. We start our analysis with discussion on a difficult Q1 with few titles poised to become major hits. Our Q2 conversation highlights titles like The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, The Mandalorian and Grogu, Toy Story 5, Supergirl, and Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day. Q3 should be the best quarter of the year with a monster month of July, where Minions 3, Moana, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey should combine to lift the box office to new heights. We close our discussion with Q4 titles like Jumanji 3, The Cat in the Hat, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, Dune 3, and Avengers: Doomsday..

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In this episode of The Boxoffice Podcast, Daniel Loria, Chad Kennerk, Rebecca Pahle, and Albert Lawrence discuss the year’s biggest stories, trends, and moviegoing moments in theatrical exhibition for 2025. On the Story of the Year, the team discusses the potential sale of Warner Bros. and its implications for the industry at large. Warner Bros. is named Distributor of the Year for an all-time-great-caliber slate, and independent filmmaker is recognized as the Industry Figure of the Year for his defense and promotion of the theatrical experience. The Viral Marketing Campaign of the Year goes to A Minecraft Movie’s Chicken Jockey, and Sony’s Demon Slayer Infinity Castle is singled out as the box office surprise of the year. In this engaging conversation, the hosts discuss the standout performances of 2025, and their favorite movies and movie-going moments of the year.

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What to Listen For
00:00 Intro 
01:00 The Power of Collective Moviegoing
02:15 2025 Industry Recap and Episode Overview
03:10 Story of the Year Warner Bros Sale
06:05 Netflix and Theatrical Windows Shift
07:00 Movie of the Year Debate Minecraft vs Ne Zha 2
09:30 Industry Figure of the Year and Consolidation
12:20 Exhibition Trends Event Cinema and Anime
15:55 Distributor of the Year Warner Bros
20:05 Viral Marketing of the Year Log Truck Campaign
24:00 Viral Moviegoing Moment Chicken Jockey
26:05 Anime Breakout and Demon Slayer Box Office
28:50 Biggest Box Office Disappointments of 2025
33:00 Best Performances of the Year
39:00 Favorite Moviegoing Moments
48:00 Best Needle Drops in Movies
51:30 Top Movies of 2025

This week on the Boxoffice podcast, presented by Barco, co-hosts Daniel Loria and Rebecca Pahle cover the latest industry news and preview upcoming releases like Avatar: Fire and Ash, along with its premium technology offerings. Then in the feature segment, Daniel talks to Barco Cinema’s vice president of marketing Adam Cassels to discuss the evolution of premium cinema technology, including the rollout of HDR by Barco.

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What to Listen For
00:00 Intro 
01:20 Warner Bros Acquisition Fallout
04:25 Global PLF and Cinema Tech News
08:10 Mega Entertainment Centers vs Micro Cinemas
12:35 Zootopia 2 Hits One Billion
13:20 Christmas Corridor Box Office Forecast
14:05 Avatar Fire and Ash Opening Outlook
19:50 SpongeBob The Housemaid and David
26:00 Christmas Day New Releases
29:05 Barco Cinema Interview Begins
33:10 Laser and HDR Explained
38:20 How HDR Changes Moviegoing
45:20 Future of Premium Large Format
51:00 Episode Wrap and Year End Preview