British and Irish Cinema Earnings Hit a Post-Pandemic Peak as The Minecraft Film Tops 2025 Box Office

Cinema revenue across Britain and Ireland has recorded its best annual performance in the post-Covid era, with A Minecraft Movie closing out 2025 as the highest-grossing film of the year.

A Gradual Climb in Revenue

Figures released by box-office analysts show that box office revenue 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 minor decline in the number of films released: 1,092 in 2025, against 1,124 in 2024.

This result constitutes the peak 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. Industry earnings recovered 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 numbers of films on release suggest that the movie-making engine, impacted by the pandemic and subsequent film industry strikes in 2023, has rebounded. It is, in fact, surpassing pre-pandemic levels; in 2019, 938 films were released.

Notably, though, a strategic shift appears to be taking place. In 2025, 224 films were recorded as “saturation” releases (playing in over 250 venues simultaneously), compared with 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.

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 translated into box office the top spot, with a total of £56.88m.

“Although it saw only a small year-on-year increase in box office, 2025 clearly represented a significant further step in the sector’s recovery after 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 finished fifth at the worldwide box office, well behind 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, ended 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 revealed the ongoing popularity 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.