British and Irish Cinema Earnings Hit a Post-Covid Peak as The Minecraft Film Tops 2025 Charts
Cinema revenue across Britain and Ireland has seen its highest annual performance after the pandemic, with A Minecraft Movie closing out 2025 as the highest-grossing film of the year.
A Steady Recovery in Revenue
Data from industry analysts show that ticket sales in the UK and Ireland totalled £1.07bn. This shows growth of 1% on 2024’s total of £1.06bn. Meanwhile, there was a small drop in the amount of films released: 1,092 in 2025, against 1,124 in 2024.
This result marks the best figure since 2019, which saw £1.35bn in total revenue. That was just prior to the steep decline of the physical cinema box office the following year, to £323.7m, as Covid restrictions had a devastating impact. Cinema revenues climbed to £595.5m in 2021, and £980.7m in 2022, only exceeding £1bn in 2023, with a total of £1.06bn.
Pipeline Recovery and Changing Tactics
The count of movies in theaters suggest that the movie-making engine, impacted by the pandemic and subsequent film industry strikes in 2023, has regained strength. It is, in fact, surpassing pre-pandemic levels; in 2019, 938 films were released.
Importantly, however, a strategic shift appears to be underway. In 2025, 224 films were recorded as “saturation” releases (playing in over 250 venues simultaneously), versus 200 in 2024 and 188 in 2019. According to reports that Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale had the widest opening in the UK in 2025, in more than 750 cinemas.
The Year's Top Film
The top-earning film of 2025 in the UK and Ireland was the gaming adaptation A Minecraft Movie. Its viral impact, notably from the “chicken jockey” scene, has resulted in box office supremacy, with a total of £56.88m.
“While growth was modest year-on-year in box office, 2025 was certainly a major milestone in the sector’s recovery following the challenges of recent years. There is considerable hope that the coming months will see notable additional gains.”
The film also topped the 2025 North American box office but placed fifth at the worldwide box office, far below the global leader, the Chinese animation Ne Zha 2.
British Productions and Event Cinema
Among British productions, the fourth Bridget Jones film, Mad About the Boy, finished the year as the most successful at the UK and Irish box office, taking £46.4m. It came far in front of Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale and 28 Years Later in second and third place.
The figures also underscored the enduring appeal of “event cinema” releases, which took a total of £44m (4.1% of the total). This category included 10 films earning more than £1m. Among these was the best ever performance for a stage production; the film of the West End production Six the Musical amassed £6.2m.
