Cinemas closing across the UK as there are ‘not enough films’, warns industry body

‘We haven’t been able to show enough films to get people back in through the door,’ said the UK Cinema Association

A lack of movies will lead to the closures of cinemas across the country, the UK Cinema Association has warned.

The impact of the pandemic and the dual Hollywood writers and actors strikes has led to a dearth of films. This has have subsequently led to cinemas fighting for survival, said the UKCA, which represents the interests of 90 per cent of the UK’s cinema operators.

“We haven’t been able to show enough films to get people back in through the door over the last six months,” said Phil Clapp, chief executive of the UKCA.

“Cinemas are a cash flow business, they have high fixed costs in terms of staffing, higher in terms of energy now, and commercial rents.

“So if the money is not coming in the door because people aren’t seeing films they want to see then that starts to become a challenge,” he continued.

It comes as the Picturehouse cinema in Bromley announced it would be closing its doors earlier this week.

“We’ve made the tough decision to close Bromley Picturehouse. The last day of trading will be Thursday 1 August,” a spokesperson for Picturehouse told The Independent.

The company cited “increasing operational costs and declining admissions” as the reasons behind the decision to close.

The ICA said the closure was a ‘devastating demonstration that no venue is safe’ (Courtesy of the ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts))

The closure of the Picturehouse comes on the back of the shutting down of a Picturehouse in Ashford, Kent, leading many to worry about the state of independent cinema.

“This is symptomatic of what remains a challenging environment for UK cinema,” continued Clapp.

“We are in recovery post-Covid – we were seeing a good steady recovery – but that has been set back by the writers and actors strike last year in the US which has meant that the film slate, certainly in first half of year for 2024, is thinner than we would have hoped.”

With the success of Inside Out 2 last week, the chief executive who has overseen 17 years of change in the industry, said that despite the challenges, cinemas are confident they will recover.

Inside Out 2 has experience huge success leading to an increased confidence among cinemas (© 2023 Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved.)

Hotly anticipated forthcoming releases, including Wicked, Deadpool and Wolverine, and Joker 2, are expected to give the industry a much-needed uplift. But it is “some way from being out of the woods yet”.

“This probably isn’t the last closure we’ll see,” he continued. And although 30 cinemas have closed since the pandemic, with many of those taken over by smaller operators, there are a dozen or so expected to open by the end of the year.

Joker 2 is expected to help the box office recover (AP)

“There’s no lack of confidence that when the films are there the audiences will return,” he continued. “The basic issue has been the strength of the film slate over the last nine months, but we are hoping this corner is being turned.”

Nicolas Raffin managing curator of The Institute of Contemporary Arts cinemas told The Independent: “The closure of Picturehouse Bromley is yet another devastating demonstration that no venue is safe in the current state of the independent film industry, even when owned and ran as part of a bigger chain.

“The commercial viability of an independent cinema is virtually impossible to reach nowadays in the UK, and state support does not seem to move towards further financial support for venues.”