No event is a better indicator of the mood in the cinema industry than CinemaCon in Las Vegas, the largest cinema trade fair in the world, which is taking place for the 13th time next week from April 8 to 11. We take a look at the program and topics – and what’s special this year.
CinemaCon can hardly be compared with the usual regional cinema trade fairs. The sequel to the legendary ShoWest, which was launched in 2011 and has been a fixture in the annual calendar of the entire film industry ever since, is not just the world’s biggest cinema convention, where studios try to get around 5,000 cinema owners excited about their upcoming product with elaborate presentations. History is actually made here. CinemaCon has long been known as the place where the success stories of the biggest film hits of the year begin. In 2022, for example, the run of „Top Gun Maverick“ began in Las Vegas with a screening of the film, which had already been postponed several times at the time due to coronavirus and was even at risk of being streamed for a short time. After the screening, during which there was repeated applause and enthusiastic standing ovations afterwards, it was clear that Paramount had a winner on its hands. Six months later, „Maverick“ had grossed 1.5 billion dollars. Not that it had single-handedly saved the cinemas (as individual films are often said to have done). But its global success certainly marked a turning point after the pandemic. „Top Gun Maverick“ had a lasting impact beyond its own numbers by bringing millions of people back to the big screen – and not just temporarily.
Also in 2022, at Warner Bros.‘ „The Big Picture“ presentation, Baz Luhrman had the audience hooked on his „Elvis“, a movie they weren’t sure what to make of before CinemaCon. After Luhrman’s performance, it was clear that it would be a contender. And it was. Worldwide box office: just under 300 million dollars. Or last year’s „Oppenheimer“. Christopher Nolan opened the Universal show with his appearance. Here, he explained to the audience for the first time why he was convinced that his three-hour film about the creator of the atomic bomb would be an event for exhibition. Following that, „Oppenheimer“ began its triumphal march, which culminated in an Oscar triumph with seven awards, including Best Picture, as well as worldwide box office of 960 million dollars. It was at CinemaCon that Ryan Gosling talked about „Kenergy“ for the first time, at CinemaCon the first teaser for „Avatar: The Way of Water“ was launched, at CinemaCon Quentin Tarantino and Leonardo DiCaprio thrilled cinema operators with their announcement of what they had in mind with „Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood“ – before production even had commenced.
There’s no business like CinemaCon-Business, the place where you can not only develop a sure sense of what will work in cinemas in the coming months, but also experience first-hand, better than anywhere else, what the issues are that are currently driving the industry, where the worries and opportunities, challenges and hopes lie. Always in a refreshingly pragmatic atmosphere. There’s no such thing as impossible. The glass is always half full. What would be seen as a problem elsewhere is seen here as an opportunity to make things better in the future. An indicator and barometer of the mood. And the event where you can fill up on energy and confidence for the coming months.
This year’s CinemaCon, which will take place as usual at Caesars Palace next week from April 8 to 11, will be a special assessment of the current situation. It is a CinemaCon that follows a challenging year for the industry, which had not yet fully recovered from the effects of the pandemic when it was once again slowed down by two protracted strikes – and which as of now is still suffering from the fact that there is not yet enough attractive new product available. It was only on the first weekend of March that „Dune: Part Two“ became the first new release in 2024 to surpass the 100 million dollar box office mark. All weekends in January and February up until then had lagged behind the comparable weekends in 2023.
It is also a CinemaCon after another turning point: Last year, John Fithian stepped down as president of the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) after almost a quarter of a century and handed over the reins to his successor Michael O’Leary, who officially took office on May 1, 2023 – following in big footsteps. His predecessor Fithian, who will be attending CinemaCon for the first time with his newly founded consulting firm The John Fithian Group, was the one who led the industry through the digital rollout (one of the first ShoWests, for which Fithian was responsible at the time, saw the first ever digital film screening in front of an audience) – and later also through the difficult Covid period: he was ridiculed because he was one of the few who insisted on theatrical exploitation while the studios were increasingly flirting with streaming options. Fithian was right in his stance. Last year, he took one last victory lap.
A remarkable development if you always take CinemaCon as a barometer, a blood pressure monitor for the entire cinema industry. In 2020, CinemaCon was canceled for the first time in its history (including its predecessor, ShoWest, which had been held a total of 36 times up to 2010) shortly after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021, the event returned late, not in spring as usual, but in August, in a slimmed-down form, a quiet sign of survival in the midst of the ongoing pandemic, a „we’re still alive“ with a very small exclamation mark. By the time CinemaCon took place again in April the following year featuring the furious „Top Gun: Maverick“ screening, among other things, the wind had changed: „We’re back“, chanted Sony studio boss Tom Rothman at his studio’s presentation, setting the tone for the entire trade fair. 2023 was then taken as the final return to regular operations. John Fithian had done his job and could hand over to his successor with a clear conscience.
However, Michael O’Leary will now have a harder time as the new head of NATO at the first CinemaCon under his patronage than was expected a year ago. When the twelfth edition closed its doors last year on April 27, general confidence prevailed. Nobody suspected that two strikes would follow shortly afterwards, putting the American cinema industry again in a state of emergency from which it would suffer, especially this year, which has been plagued by various postponements, even though the studios were able to resume regular operations last November. It will therefore once again be a CinemaCon of encouragement. Once again, people will be encouraged to persevere, and the studios will do their best to restore shattered trust with their presentations.
So what has been announced for the 13th CinemaCon? What is certain is that, with the exception of Sony, all studios are back on board with their shows, which are intended to whet the appetite for what is on offer for the cinema summer and beyond. The latter will be the most exciting part. We basically already know what will be coming in 2024. We also know that the market will not yet be able to fully recover. But how will Hollywood position itself beyond that, what will the studios focus on, what can we look forward to? On Monday, 8 April, Universal will kick things off with an evening screening of „The Fall Guy“, David Leitch’s film adaptation of the cult series with Ryan Gosling as Colt Sievers and Emily Blunt at his side. Just a few weeks ago, the action comedy celebrated its world premiere at the SXSW Festival in Austin and was not only wildly acclaimed by audiences, but also received glowing reviews, which are usually reserved for more serious films. Some are already calling the film the „‚Barbie‘ of the movie year 2024“. That’s certainly enough to whet the appetite for Universal’s first big summer title, which will be released on April 30 – a Tuesday, mind you! – in cinemas in Germany.
Things really get going the following day with the traditional „State of the Industry“ addresses, at which MPA boss Charles Rivkin will be joined on the podium for the first time by Michael O’Leary, who will speak to the assembled industry. This will be followed by a „Special Studio Presentation“, although it is not yet clear what this will be. The afternoon will then be taken up by Warner Bros. with its „The Big Picture“ show, which is always a highlight because not only are exclusive insights into the upcoming product given, but a parade of stars can also be expected. Last year, the new CEO David Zaslav took the opportunity to address cinema operators directly. Let’s see if that will be the case again this year. Upcoming highlights from Warner Bros. include the prequel „Furiosa: A Mad Max Story“, which will have its world premiere in Cannes; the directorial debut of M. Night Shyamalan’s daughter Ishana’s directorial debut, the shocker „They See You“; the two „Horizon“ westerns by Kevin Costner, which are scheduled a few weeks apart and will be released in Germany by Tobis; the new mystery thriller by M. Night Shyamalan, „Trap“; then Tim Burton’s sequel „Beetlejuice Beetlejuice“ in the fall and then the main event in October, Todd Phillips‘ „Joker: Folie à Deux“ with Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, to finally close the year with another event movie, „The Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim“, an animation production by the director of “ghost in the Shell”. Clint Eastwood’s probaly last film, „Juror #2“ with Nicolas Hoult in the leading role, is still without a fixed date.
Angel Studios, which focuses on releasing Christian-themed titles and landed such a big hit in US cinemas with „Sound of Freedom“ in its first year of existence in 2023 that it took eighth place in the distributor rankings at the end of the year, will kick things off on Wednesday. This year, the newcomer has already released Alejandro Monteverde’s new film, „Cabrini“, in cinemas, albeit with not quite the same resounding success as last year’s blockbuster. This will be immediately followed by the presentation by Lionsgate, who caused a sensation a year ago with the very first trailer for „The Hunger Games – The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes“. And this year? The mini-major will release Guy Ritchie’s new film „The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare“ in April, as well as its own faith-based title „Unsung Heroes“. Also up for release: The remake of „The Crow“ starring Bill Skarsgård, whose first trailer is already so controversial that even the director of the 1994 original, Alex Proyas, has chimed in; the games adaptation „Borderlands“ by Eli Roth, who was able to secure Oscar winner Cate Blanchett as well as Kevin Hart and Jack Black for the leading roles (what a combo! ); the eleventh installment of the „Saw“ franchise, once again directed by Kevin Greutert; and Marc Forster’s „White Bird“, a new film from the „Wonder“ universe.
The afternoon belongs to Universal. Last year, the major was unbeatable; this year, the studio led by Donna Langley wants to build on blockbusters such as the Oscar winner „Oppenheimer“ and, of course, „The Super Mario Bros. Movie“. It has already made a good start with „Kung Fu Panda 4“. We have already explained above why we can also expect „The Fall Guy“ to succeed. Universal’s other line-up this summer already includes the guaranteed successes „Despicable Me 4“ from hit maker Illumination and the reboot „Twisters“ from „Minari“ director Lee Isaac Chung, whose first trailer caused quite a stir at the Super Bowl and has been one of the highly touted titles of the movie summer ever since. The Blumhouse horror title „Speak No Evil“ will follow in the fall. From DreamWorks Animation comes „The Wild Robot“ by „How to Tame a Dragon“ director Chris Sanders. And finally, the eagerly awaited film adaptation of the hit musical „Wicked“ by Jon M. Chu, which Universal had already previewed at CinemaCon 2023 with the first clips, awaits at the end of the year. And because the studio likes to take advantage of the opportunity in Las Vegas, we can perhaps already look forward to the first images from major titles for 2025. We will keep you posted.
The last day begins with the presentation by Paramount, which got the 2024 cinema year off to a highly encouraging start with the box office success of „Bob Marley: One Life“. Again, the very first footage was shown at CinemaCon last year, where theatre owner were also able to experience the first scenes from the studio’s two upcoming summer hits: „If“ by John Krasinski with Ryan Reynolds, one of the few major original films this summer, will be released in mid-May; „A Quiet Place: Day One“ with Lupita Nyong’o, directed by „Pig“ director Michael Sarnoski, will follow at the end of June. The animated film „Transformers One“ and an as yet untitled sequel to the surprise shocker from 2022, „Smile“, are then scheduled for the fall. At the end of the year, „Gladiator 2“ by Ridley Scott will be released, starring Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal. And the third part of „Sonic the Hedgehog“ as well as the limited release of the Robbie Williams biopic „Better Man“, in which the British pop star plays himself under the direction of „The Greatest Showman“ director Michael Gracey, will follow immediately after Christmas.
Disney will then take to the stage of the Colosseum Theatre as the last major presentation. You can expect to see longer clips from the studio’s big summer film, Pixar’s „Inside Out 2“. And hopefully there will be the first material from „Moana 2“, the sequel to the wonderful Disney animated film from 2016, and of course from Barry Jenkins‘ „Lion King“ spin-off „Mufasa“: it is still unclear what the „Moonlight“ Oscar winner will do with this material – anything seems possible. There is also the remake of the 1981 Robert Littell thriller bestseller „The Amateur“ with Rami Malek, directed by „Slow Horses“ director James Hawes. There is also a series of highly anticipated projects from 20th Century: the „Planet of the Apes“ saga continues in May after the conclusion of the first trilogy with „Planet of the Apes: New Kingdom“; in addition, the „Alien“ comes to new life with Fede Alvarez‘ „Alien: Romulus“, in which Cailee Spaeny, who won Best Actress at Venice, follows in the footsteps of Sigourney Weaver. And then, of course, Disney still has „Deadpool and Wolverine“ waiting in the wings. If there is one sure-fire hit in the coming summer, then it is the third standalone film with the Marvel superhero played by Ryan Reynolds, who is assisted in the Shawn Levy-directed adventure by Hugh Jackman aka Wolverine, who was not really expected to return to his signature role after „Logan“ seven years ago. So the first „X-Men“ film since the takeover of Fox by Disney is of course a special highlight.
In addition to the big industry trade show with countless exhibitors presenting the latest technical achievements, there will also be various panels and seminars over the course of the four days in Las Vegas, some of which will deal with pressing issues and all of which will feature top-class speakers. In the event „Strength in the Middle: Working Together to Boost Mid-Budget Films“, moderated by NATO CEO Michael O’Leary himself, Lisa Bunnell from Focus Features and Elissa Federoff from NEON, among others, will discuss the particular importance of so-called smaller films for the continued existence of cinema culture in a rapidly changing environment. The success of festival hits such as „Poor Things“ and „Anatomy of a Fall“, but also of surprise hits such as „Anyone But You“ or „Godzilla Minus One“ form a good basis for an intensive exchange, although it remains to be seen to what extent American experiences can be compared with Germany. One highlight on Wednesday should be „An Industry Think Tank: 2024“. Moderated by renowned industry journalist Matt Belloni, Adam Aron, Chairman & CEO, AMC Entertainment, Bill Kramer, CEO, Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, and Cathleen Taff, President, Distribution, Franchise & Audience Insights, The Walt Disney Studios, will discuss the challenges facing the industry. In addition, the Martin Scorsese Legend of Cinema Award will be presented and the Big Screen Achievement Awards will close CinemaCon. The award winners so far are Lupita Nyong’o, Amy Poehler, Shawn Levy, Dennis Quaid and Joseph Quinn.
Thomas Schultze