UK and Ireland Cinema Earnings Hit a Post-Covid Peak as A Minecraft Movie Leads the Year's Charts

The UK and Irish box office has posted its strongest annual performance after the pandemic, with A Minecraft Movie finishing 2025 as the number one film of the year.

A Gradual Climb in Earnings

Figures released by box-office analysts show that ticket sales in the UK and Ireland amounted to £1.07bn. This represents an increase of 1% on 2024’s total of £1.06bn. At the same time, there was a slight decrease in the number of films released: 1,092 in 2025, compared with 1,124 in 2024.

This result constitutes the peak since 2019, which saw £1.35bn in total revenue. That was shortly before the precipitous drop of the physical cinema box office the following year, to £323.7m, as Covid restrictions took a severe toll. Industry earnings 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 Strategic Shift

The numbers of films on release suggest that the movie-making engine, affected by the pandemic and subsequent film industry strikes in 2023, has recovered. It is, in fact, topping pre-pandemic levels; in 2019, 938 films were released.

Significantly however, a change in approach 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, across 750 cinemas.

The Year's Top Film

The highest grossing film of 2025 in the UK and Ireland was the game-to-screen translation A Minecraft Movie. Its online buzz, including the “chicken jockey” scene, has translated into box office supremacy, with a total of £56.88m.

“Despite only a slight annual rise in box office, 2025 was certainly a key advance in the sector’s recovery after the challenges of recent years. There is great optimism that the coming months will see substantial more growth.”

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

British Productions and Event Cinema

Among UK-made films, 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 significantly before 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 highest-grossing run for a stage production; the film of the West End production Six the Musical amassed £6.2m.