British and Irish Cinema Takings Hit a Post-Covid High as A Minecraft Movie Tops 2025 Charts

Cinema revenue across Britain and Ireland has recorded its best annual performance since the Covid pandemic, with A Minecraft Movie ending 2025 as the number one film of the year.

A Gradual Climb in Revenue

Statistics published by experts show that cinema takings in the UK and Ireland reached £1.07bn. This represents an increase of 1% on 2024’s total of £1.06bn. Concurrently, there was a slight decrease in the amount of films released: 1,092 in 2025, versus 1,124 in 2024.

This result is the highest total since 2019, which saw £1.35bn in total revenue. That was shortly before the steep decline of the physical cinema box office the following year, to £323.7m, as Covid restrictions took a severe toll. Box office takings climbed to £595.5m in 2021, and £980.7m in 2022, only exceeding £1bn in 2023, with a total of £1.06bn.

Industry Rebound and Changing Tactics

The count of movies in theaters suggest that the film production cycle, affected by the pandemic and subsequent film industry strikes in 2023, has recovered. It is, in fact, exceeding pre-pandemic levels; in 2019, 938 films were released.

Notably, though, a change in approach appears to be occurring. In 2025, 224 films were recorded as “saturation” releases (playing in over 250 venues simultaneously), against 200 in 2024 and 188 in 2019. According to reports that Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale had the biggest debut in the UK in 2025, in more than 750 cinemas.

2025's Top Film

The most successful film of 2025 in the UK and Ireland was the gaming adaptation A Minecraft Movie. Its viral impact, featuring the “chicken jockey” scene, has led to box office the top spot, with a total of £56.88m.

“While growth was modest year-on-year in box office, 2025 was certainly a key advance in the sector’s recovery following the challenges of recent years. There is strong confidence that the coming months will see notable additional gains.”

The film also led the 2025 North American box office but came in fifth at the worldwide box office, far below the global leader, the Chinese animation Ne Zha 2.

Homegrown Hits and Event Cinema

Among domestic features, the fourth Bridget Jones film, Mad About the Boy, was 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 highlighted 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 record-breaking showing for a stage production; the film of the West End production Six the Musical amassed £6.2m.