Gen Z Ditched Streaming for Movie Theaters This Summer, and It Paid Off

A generation raised on streaming and short-form video just helped push the summer box office to an all-time record, and industry insiders say it's no accident.

This year’s summer box office numbers are disproving the Hollywood misconception that Gen Z would rather scroll than sit through a two-hour movie.

A group of young moviegoers in a movie theater | Source: Pexels

U.S. theaters made a record-breaking $4.76 billion between May and September, according to Deadline, with admissions topping 322 million, up from 275 million the previous summer.

Blockbuster hits "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," "The Odyssey," and "Backrooms" drew in viewers under 25 in numbers studios weren’t counting on.

This development didn’t happen overnight. A Fandango-backed CNBC report from earlier this year found that Gen Z averaged seven theater visits in 2025, matching millennials and outpacing Gen X and boomers.

Jason Dorsey, co-founder of The Center for Generational Kinetics, put it simply: "Gen Z absolutely wants to leave their house, probably more than you know."

Part of the draw is social and financial. Both Deadline and CNBC highlight affordability as a factor, since movies are one of the few outings that isn’t heavy on the wallet of the budget-conscious generation.

Young moviegoers enjoying a movie in the theater | Source: Pexels

AMC's Carrie Trotter told CNBC that the social experience "really outweighs the movie itself" for many young viewers.

So while the pandemic once threatened to make theaters obsolete, it's the generation that grew up during it that's now filling the seats.