#’Spider-Man,’ return of moviegoing ignites Cinemark’s comeback

Blockbusters like “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Scream” have ignited the box office, giving cinema chain Cinemark a resurgence and lifting its fourth-quarter results.

Cinemark, the third-largest movie theater chain in the US behind AMC and Regal parent Cineworld, touted “significant advances in pandemic recovery,” thanks to a return of moviegoing.

Cinemark CEO Sean Gamble credited government restrictions during the pandemic, which include vaccine mandates and mask wearing, for boosting consumer confidence to return to movie theaters.

“We are highly encouraged by recent favorable developments in the state of the virus, government restrictions and associated consumer sentiment regarding moviegoing,” he said.

Quarterly net income totaled 5 cents a share, compared with a loss of $2.03 a share. Revenue shot up to $666.7 million from just $98.2 million. Analysts expected a loss of 8 cents on sales of $601.3 million.

Gamble also said moviegoing is coming back because films are premiering exclusively in the theater, and not debuting simultaneously on streaming services, a common practice that took place during the pandemic.

Like other theater chains, Cinemark benefited from the return of genuine blockbusters in the quarter, notably “Spider-Man,” which is the company’s highest-grossing film ever, Gamble said.

According to Box Office Mojo, a ticket sales tracker, the action flick, starring Tom Holland, Zendaya and Benedict Cumberbatch, has reeled in $773.5 million domestically and $1.83 billion worldwide, making it one of the highest-grossing films of all time.