Cineplex experienced a decline in profits and revenue during the fourth quarter, primarily due to lower attendance at its theaters.
The Canadian cinema chain announced a profit of $369,000, down from $3.3 million the previous year. Revenue for the three months ending December 31, 2025 fell nearly 2 percent to $334.8 million compared to $340.9 million during the same time frame in 2024. This drop in revenue coincided with a decrease in theater attendance by 1.8 percent to 10.1 million visitors, down from 11.1 million last year.
Popular films for Cineplex over the busy holiday season included Avatar: Fire And Ash and Zootopia 2; however, ticket sales were negatively impacted by a slow start in October.
Cineplex turned to international films like Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Infinity Castle and raised ticket prices for premium formats to help boost overall box office numbers for the fourth quarter. “This underscores how alternative and international content remains key differentiators for Cineplex and position us well for 2026, which includes a number of highly anticipated international releases,” said Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob during an analyst call.
Jacob later shared with The Hollywood Reporter that international films are now part of his company’s strategy to balance out the fluctuations of Hollywood’s box office while also adding more entertainment options outside traditional cinema settings.
“Prior to COVID, we used to do 2 percent to 2.5 percent international (titles). Now we’re over 10 percent,” Jacob noted. He highlighted the Hindi-language film Dhurandhar as one of Cineplex’s top five performing movies during this latest quarter.
Jacob is optimistic about big earnings from Ranveer Singh’s sequel, Dhurandhar 2, which will be released on March 19, 2026, coinciding with the Eid festival. Also coming soon to Cineplex is the two-part Hindi epic Ramayana directed by Nitesh Tiwari set for November 2026 release during Diwali. Other international films expected on Cineplex screens include the martial arts epic Blades of the Guardians and Scare Out, which is a Chinese crime-drama spy thriller.
The CEO explained that data from their Scene loyalty program helps them choose suitable theaters and showtimes that appeal to diverse audiences across Canada. “Six years ago, we’d never have placed some of these films. We put them in now and they do really well for us,” Jacob elaborated.
He also anticipates improved box office results in 2026 thanks to stronger Hollywood offerings compared to those seen in 2025; this should help stabilize operations after slight venue reductions over recent years.
“With the industry predicting box office increases from eight to fifteen percent over twenty twenty-five, and with our international content and our distribution business, we should be well engaged in getting reasonably strong numbers for twenty twenty-six,” Jacob told analysts.
In this latest quarter, box office revenue per patron increased to $13.87 compared to $13.26 last year while concession revenue per patron rose slightly to $9.92 from $9.41 year-over-year.
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