When discussing box office revenue why do we typically only refer to the domestic total and not the worldwide total?

When box office totals are discussed or written about, the domestic box office total is often what is referenced, as opposed to the worldwide total.

Why is that?

For example, in the image below you can see that when Rotten Tomatoes refers to the box office total for The Avengers it is only referencing the domestic total (both domestic and foreign are shown on Box Office Mojo, as well as the worldwide total). This would seem to be wildly misleading, especially for blockbuster movies.

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box-office

Best Answer

It depends what the point of the analysis is. Rotten Tomatoes, a review site, is mostly concerned with helping US consumers pick what movies to watch. To the average US consumer, it matters more whether other Americans liked the film than whether the film appealed to foreign audiences. The same logic would apply to US news outlets, as long as they aren't specifically talking about how a film appeals to foreign audiences.

Box Office Mojo is more of a data-lover's paradise that gives you any information you might find interesting.

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What does box office revenue mean?

The term box office revenue refers to the total revenue generated through movie ticket sales. It is primarily used to measure and compare the commercial success of a film. Ticket sales may account for a large portion of the film industry's total revenue \u2013 especially before the pandemic.

How is box office revenue calculated?

According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the ATP is "calculated as the total revenues generated from tickets sales divided by the number of feature film tickets sold during the year of reference."

How do box office numbers work?

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) records box office numbers for all of the year's movies. A film's actual revenue will be determined over time and will include factors like merchandising, product placement fees, television rights and DVD sales.

Is box office a profit?

But it's important to remember that box office totals reflect how much people have paid theaters for tickets for a movie. And a film becomes profitable after the movie company has recouped all the money it spent not only making the movie but marketing it.

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