Americans are buying roughly half as many movie tickets today as they did when I graduated high school, back in 2002. According to Pew Research, 1.57 billion tickets were sold in 2002 vs. 769.2 million last year.

This is the latest of many recent confirmations of a long-held belief of mine, that moviegoing has become, and will continue to be, an elite activity. There are lots of reasons for this.

The industry seems scared of new ideas, and access to the entire history of media, from Charlie Chaplin to this show, is easier than ever. But the most startling reason why is that most normal people, like you and me, can't afford it. When the cost of living goes up, and wages don't, something's gotta give.

The best conversations are two-way streets. I want to hear from you.

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Source: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/03/06/as-the-academy-awards-approach-a-look-at-moviegoing-habits-in-the-united-states/

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