Drive-in movie theaters saw a surge in customers during the pandemic. Are they sticking around?

Drive-ins helped movie theaters stay afloat during the pandemic, when their fate was in serious doubt. Now, years later, drive-in theaters are still providing a small but meaningful boost for the industry.

Drive-ins accounted for a significant portion of box office revenue in 2020, due to social distancing policies that reduced entertainment options. From late March through mid-August of 2020, drive-ins generated 85% of box office revenue in the United States, compared to 2.9% during the same time period in 2019, according to Comscore data provided to CNN.

As pandemic restrictions eased, movie-goers began to return to brick-and-mortar cinemas, and some drive-in locations shuttered for good. In 2024, roughly 283 drive-ins were operating nationwide, down from about 305 in 2019 and 318 in 2021, according to the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association (UDITOA). Numbers were not available for 2020.

There were 4,063 drive-ins operating in the United States in 1958, the association estimated, citing industry resources.

According to Euronews, the concert was open to 250 vehicles.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

According to Euronews, the concert was open to 250 vehicles.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

a drive-thru naturalization ceremony in Detroit on June 17.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1600″ width=”2400″ loading=’lazy’/>

Art Parking drive-in festival in Prague, Czech Republic, on April 24. The festival, created partly in response to the coronavirus outbreak, will continue until June 30.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

wrote Samantha Swindler of The Oregonian/OregonLive. “Four dancers, in short shorts and pasties, perform under cover of an outdoor tent in the club parking lot, while customers wait for their orders in their cars.”” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

their drive-thru graduation party in Knoxville, Tennessee, on April 26. They had just graduated from high school.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1143″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

Maple Lawn Farms drive-thru strawberry festival on April 26.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1066″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

funeral for Tom Minh Nguyen in Muhlenberg Township, Pennsylvania, on April 16. There was a drive-up viewing so mourners could pay their respects without getting out of their cars. Only family members stood next to the grave. Everyone else could listen to the audio through their car radios.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1018″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

The event, put together by the nonprofit group Farm to Table Guam, offered produce grown by local farmers and was set to run for four hours. But it was cut short because the majority of the produce was sold in about half the time. ” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1053″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

Related story: How the pandemic has changed education” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

Related story: With people out of work, food banks are stepping up” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1067″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

her drive-thru birthday party in Henderson, Kentucky, on March 27. Thompson, a resident at the Colonial Assisted Living facility, was turning 97, and she had a drive-thru party because she was unable to celebrate with family and friends.” class=”image__dam-img image__dam-img–loading” onload=’this.classList.remove(‘image__dam-img–loading’)’ onerror=”imageLoadError(this)” height=”1039″ width=”1600″ loading=’lazy’/>

Drive-thrus and drive-ins: How we’re relying on our cars during the pandemic

“It’s a labor of love,” said John Vincent, president of UDITOA. “For the most part, we’re independently owned. For many, it’s a second job.”

Drive-ins typically offer slightly cheaper tickets and concessions compared to the industry’s ruling theater chains. AMC, for instance, could cost about $26 for an IMAX ticket outside of Baltimore, Maryland, whereas a double screening at the local Bengies Drive-In would cost roughly $12.50 per person.

Much like their indoor theater counterparts, concessions drive the bulk of earnings at drive-ins.

Donna Saunders, the co-owner of Ohio’s Field of Dreams and Van-Del Drive-in theaters, said drive-ins would “go out of business” if customers didn’t buy concessions. She described drive-ins as one of the earliest “dinner and a movie” concepts, often with more food offerings than traditional theaters.

Even as demand has waned since the pandemic, some organizers are reopening shuttered drive-ins.

“We have these younger couples purchasing drive-in theaters or reopening drive-ins to carry it on, so it has great name recognition of the experience,” said Mike Kerz, co-owner of the Midway Drive-in Theater in Illinois and a UDITOA board member.

Last year, Paul Cole reopened the Rose City Drive-In, a theater in Newark, New York, that opened in 1956 and closed nearly three decades later. Attendance has been “okay,” Cole said: About 25 cars came each night last Friday through Sunday for showings of Disney’s “Fantastic Four” and “Freakier Friday,” but he’d prefer as many as 70 cars on a weekend night.

“We took an opportunity to reopen this and try to get people outlets for recreation in our region,” Cole said.

Donna Saunders and her husband, Rod, credited part of the recent decline in drive-in attendance to younger movie fans leaving the venues as the 2020 experience fades for many. Some people bring their grandchildren to drive-ins as part of an ongoing cycle to motivate younger generations to attend drive-ins, Saunders said.

Drive-ins often do well with throwback and retro content, said Saunders. On Labor Day weekend, for instance, Universal Pictures’ “Jaws” will re-release for its 50th anniversary.

Victor Bonacore, who manages Ohio’s Dixie Twin Drive-in, estimated an average of 150 cars attend on a given Friday night. Since he doesn’t expect major releases for the remainder of August, he’s planning an ’80s weekend — he plans to show the 1985 release of “The Goonies” followed by Zach Cregger’s recent hit, “Weapons,” on one screen. Alternatively, “E.T.” will be on the second screen. (“Weapons” was released by Warner Bros. Pictures, which shares a parent company with CNN.)

“Nostalgia is a huge part of our society and I feel like people will still … come out for it,” said Bonacore.