Why is it that movies come out more often in the summer and Christmas? Especially the big budget flicks. Is there really any point to this, or has it just become custom? Have they always been doing this?
With regards to big summer releases, no. Until the mid-1970’s, summer was usually the dumping ground for low-budget horror movies, exploitation films, and teen-oriented fare. Starting in 1975 with the huge success of “Jaws” and in 1977 with “Star Wars” (both summer releases), the movie studios got in the habit of rolling out their special-effects laden, audience-pleasing films between late May and August.
Of course the reason why summer suddenly became such a lucrative time of year for Hollywood can be attributed to two developments. The first was the practice of opening a movie on thousands on screens at once. Before the 1970’s, the usual practice was to open a movie in just a few cities and then have it wend across North America (and eventually the rest of the world) over the next several months. As a result, a popular movie’s buzz (and grosses) would build gradually as it moved from town to town. Now, because a typical blockbuster opens on many screens across the country at once, it can make more money more quickly.
The second is the realization by Hollywood that a large part of the film-going audience consists of people below the age of 18. Since these people are out of school for three months, they need something to do with their free time–like seeing “Spiderman” twelve times. That’s why so many of the movies out this time of year seem aimed at those below the legal drinking age.
As for Christmas, this has always been a time of year Hollywood has reserved for both popular blockbusters and Oscar bait. Like during the summer, you have a lot of kids who are out of school and need something to do. Plus, since Academy Award eligibility ends on December 31, the studios also try to get out their more “artistic” heavy-hitters out this time of year. According to the conventional wisdom in Hollywood, a movie released in November or December has a better chance of being remembered by the Academy than one released in spring or summer.