Next year's schedule is heavy with new installments of the most successful hero series, including "Star Wars" and "Avengers" films from Walt Disney Co. and "The Hunger Games" finale from Lions Gate Entertainment.

"What makes 2015 different is that the [Northern hemisphere] summer slate is mostly known brands and franchises and sequels," says Craig Dehmel, executive vice president for international distribution at Twentieth Century Fox, which will release "Taken 3" (so many kidnappings) and a reboot of "The Fantastic Four."

The industry could use the help. At one point this past US summer, the usual high season for movies, the box office was down 20 per cent, researcher Rentrak says.

It's been tougher to attract audiences, who have grown devoted to streaming services such as Netflix Inc. A-list-ish actors such as Matthew McConaughey and Vince Vaughn also are doing more television.

To hold on to filmgoers, theatres have tried upgrading their facilities with cushy recliners and gourmet food, and they'll soon add laser projectors promising crisper images.

Record Revenue

Cinema revenue set a record in 2013, with US and Canadian theatres generating $US10.9 billion at the box office, according to Rentrak. That resulted in part from strong performances by blockbuster sequels, including "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" and "Iron Man 3," and higher ticket prices.

Yet attendance numbers fell 11 per cent last year to 1.34 billion, from 1.5 billion a decade years ago, according to the Motion Picture Association of America. And the summer of 2014's box office take was the smallest since 2006, says Rentrak.

"We regard the summer performance as yet another piece of evidence that domestic theatrical attendance is in secular decline," Doug Creutz, a Cowen Group analyst, wrote in August.

To fight back, studios are planning play-it-safe sequels for years to come, sprinkled with fresh efforts to develop new multipicture series.

"We create branded events that, in success, become a social phenomenon," says Dave Hollis, executive vice president for theatrical exhibition sales and distribution at Walt Disney Studios, which will release Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron" in May.

"We can push creative boundaries and take additional risk because of the probability of success."

More Sequels

In 2015, Paramount Pictures will release a sixth "Paranormal Activity" film and a fifth "Mission: Impossible" installment. Besides its final "Hunger Games" movie, Lions Gate will open a second "Divergent" film. Universal Pictures will release the seventh "Fast & Furious," which will include footage of the series' late star, Paul Walker. It's also adding a fourth incarnation of the 1993 hit "Jurassic Park."

Disney will try out new ideas with the first films from its Pixar animation unit in two years, "Inside Out" and "The Good Dinosaur." It's also producing "Ant-Man," a new character from its Marvel comics stable.

Hollywood plans to maximise its audience next year through better scheduling.

"Studios are being smart about programming their films, increasingly avoiding crowding release dates with similarly themed films," says producer David Linde, former chairman of Universal Pictures.

With conversions to digital projection and 3-D complete, theatre operators are also seeking new ways to lure moviegoers. Some, including Regal Entertainment Group, the largest chain, have installed 4-D cinema, adding motion, smell, wind, rain and even bubbles to a small number of theaters.

Luxury recliners will be in wider release: Regal will put them into as many as 350 theaters next year. Its Avalon 12 in Alpharetta, Georgia, for instance, is promoting a Wine, Dine and Recline experience, offering appetizers and entrees alongside snacks.

Although the fare promises to be novel, the movies will definitely look familiar.

Bloomberg