Swedish cinemas have lost a large part of their viewers since the pandemic – and the decline continues.
In total, 10.3 million visits were made to Swedish cinemas in 2024. This should be compared to an average of 16.4 million cinema visits during the period 2017-2019 – a decrease of 37 per cent, according to the Swedish Film Institute, which is now releasing the statistics for the film year.
Those who went to the cinema chose to an increasing extent children's films, which accounted for nearly 40 per cent of the visits. The two most viewed films at the cinema were the children's films "Insidan ut 2" and "Dumma mej 4" with 612,000 and 584,000 viewers, respectively.
A bright spot for Cinema Sweden is that the market share for domestic film increased by five percentage points. 22 per cent of cinema visits were to Swedish productions, with "Den sista resan" as the year's most viewed film. 412,000 Swedes saw Filip Hammar's and Fredrik Wikingsson's documentary.
But it is difficult to reach out with original stories. All of the top ten most viewed films at Swedish cinemas in 2024 were part of a film series, or based on figures that had appeared in other works – or dealt with real people, such as Filip Hammar's father Lars Hammar.
The Swedish Film Institute notes in its report that interest in film is still strong, but that cinemas are exposed to tough competition from streaming services.
The average Swede watches 38 films per year, regardless of platform.
Mikael Forsell/TT
Facts: 2024's most viewed films at the cinema
TT
1. Insidan ut 2, 612,000.
2. Dumma mej 4, 584,000.
3. Deadpool & Wolverine, 449,000.
4. Dune: Part two, 417,000.
5. Den sista resan, 412,000.
6. Vaiana 2, 359,000.
7. Det slutar med oss, 297,000.
8. Gladiator II, 289,000.
9. Kung Fu Panda, 251,000.
10. Håkan Bråkan 2, 248,000.
