At Movies, Fewer Eyes, Bigger Haul

Fewer people went to the movies this summer than last, confirming Hollywood's fears that this year's slate of pictures would not match the crowd pleasers of 2007. But luckily for an industry that cares mostly about the money, higher ticket prices and a Batman sequel delivered near-record revenue to the major studios. For the crucial summer season, a period from the first weekend in May to Labor Day, when studios record about 40 percent of their annual box office revenue, domestic ticket sales totaled an estimated $4.2 billion, according to movie tracking firms. Despite attendance falling 4 percent (to 586.6 million moviegoers), according to Media by Numbers, that performance still surpassed last year's $4.18 billion. Factoring in inflation, the summer of 2002 still holds the industry record with $4.63 billion.