Why are Taylor Swift and Beyoncé’s concert films so successful? Is the recent surge in concert films ushering in a new era in cinemas?

One is the “music industry”, the other is the “queen” – Taylor Swift and Beyoncé “revived” cinema in the US when theater owners seemed to be tired of waiting for Hollywood to carry out its mission to solve the problem. rescue.

“Everyone wants a different kind of experience,” one expert told Yahoo. “So every seat at a movie concert is considered front row.”

Is the recent surge in concert films ushering in a new era at the cinema?

With Beyoncé’s “Renaissance: A Film” and Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour,” the two superstars are helping usher in a new era of concert films.

Travis Knox, Associate Professor at Chapman University’s Dodge College of Cinema and Media Arts, said recent successes in the concert film genre are Beyoncé’s “Renaissance: A Film” and “The Eras Tour ” by Taylor Swift, has opened up a whole new era.

Mr. Travis Knox also added that “There is not much different, the production and marketing costs are relatively cheap but come with tons of guaranteed free advertising. Shows like Swift and Beyoncé naturally meet those criteria.”

Ray Nutt, CEO of Fathom Events, a film events company. This company limits participation in concerts, theaters and short-term events. Mr. Ray Nutt asserted that this success will create more success, because “Hollywood is a copycat industry. It always has been. When people see something good happening, they will try do the same”.

Swift’s “The Eras Tour” concert tour, which Nutt called “a unicorn event,” showcased 10 eras of the 33-year-old singer’s music in the span of 2 hours and 49 minutes and broke broke box office records when it hit theaters on October 13. This tour grossed $92.8 million in the US in its opening weekend. This is the most impressive opening number ever for a concert film.

Taylor Swift attended “The Eras Tour” launch in Los Angeles.

Globally, Swift’s concert film, distributed by AMC Theaters, has grossed more than $249 million at the box office to date, BoxOfficeMojo reported. It is second only to the documentary about the concert after Michael Jackson’s death, titled “This Is It”, which grossed more than 261 million USD globally in 2009. On December 13, its 15th birthday. 34, a cut from “The Eras Tour,” will be available to rent on platforms like Apple TV, Prime Video and YouTube.

Beyoncé followed Swift’s footsteps, releasing her own concert film on December 1. Previously, just 6 months after its release, “Renaissance World Tour” set a box office record, while behind-the-scenes footage had not been released. According to Hollywood Reporter, Beyoncé’s nearly three-hour film “Renaissance: A Film”, also distributed by AMC Theaters, grossed 21.8 million USD in North America in its first three days of release and became the highest-grossing film in the world. highest opening for early December in two decades.

Beyoncé performs on stage during the “Renaissance World Tour”.

“The ‘Era’ and ‘Renaissance’ tours had the No. 1 and No. 2 gross per-show grosses of any tour ever. Swift topped the list,” said Travis Knox. books with a staggering average of $12.86 million per concert, while Beyoncé earns an average of $10.35 million per performance. With the two’s passionate fan base, The profits will certainly be huge.”

Concert films are not a new phenomenon. In February, pop supergroup BTS released their final concert (until the group reunites in 2025), titled “Yet to Come.” The concert was live-streamed for free last November. However, the event is limited to more than 5,800 theaters in 128 countries through Trafalgar Releasing.

BTS’s comeback with Yet To Come and the album Proof achieved many great achievements after 24 hours of release.

The film has earned more than $53 million in box office revenue worldwide. BTS’s previous record was the “Permission to Dance on Stage – Seoul: Live Viewing” concert in 2022, which was streamed live in global theaters in just one day, earning 32.6 million USD.

The Korean group, along with other artists such as Coldplay and Metallica, have embraced cinema as another path. They believe that through cinema, the music and stories in their “brainchild” can still reach fans – those who, due to geographical circumstances and high ticket prices, cannot attend. Cheer live.

Tickets to Swift’s “Eras Tour” concert in the US range from $49 to $449. However, concert tickets are more affordable at $19.89 for adults, $13.13 for children and seniors. Tickets for Beyoncé’s American Renaissance tour range from $62 to around $1,000, while concert materials only cost around $22 per ticket.

“Even though sitting at home can never have the same authentic experience and feeling as listening to live music, when the film is as well made as Beyoncé’s, viewers can still experience it in a high-end, emotional setting. The thrill of the event is much greater. Shows like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé attract a large number of fans who may not be able to afford to experience it live Fans who watched live can still rewatch that amazing night with many different angles and behind-the-scenes footage – where they can catch details they may have missed before,” Knox said. explain.

Mr. Nutt emphasized that: “Everyone wants a different experience. With concert movies, every seat is considered prime. He also added that cinemas need to upgrade to move forward. first and provide audiences with new, different experiences.

“I know a lot of people who went to see the ‘Eras’ concert live at the stadium and said ‘I wish I could see this show in a movie theater because I was sitting so far away and so high.’ I really want to see Taylor’s facial expression. I know people who have watched the show live and have seen their idols up close two or three times at the cinema,” Nutt shared.

There are artists who encourage fans to go to the cinema. Knox theorizes that major tours with enthusiastic fan followings like those of Harry Styles and Bad Bunny could attract large audiences. “I really think this is going to be successful,” Mr. Nutt said of the current resurgence of musical films, although he noted that there are often ups and downs in Hollywood.

Knox agrees with that view. He believes that over time, with saturation and more profiteering behavior, when concert films begin to perform poorly, the market will immediately retreat, making way for something new. , more interesting.