British and Irish Cinema Takings Reach a Post-Pandemic Peak as A Minecraft Movie Tops the Year's Box Office

The UK and Irish box office has recorded its best annual performance since the Covid pandemic, with A Minecraft Movie closing out 2025 as the top-earning film of the year.

A Gradual Recovery in Revenue

Statistics published by experts show that cinema takings in the UK and Ireland reached £1.07bn. This shows growth of 1% on 2024’s total of £1.06bn. Concurrently, there was a small drop in the amount of films released: 1,092 in 2025, compared with 1,124 in 2024.

This result is the highest total since 2019, which saw £1.35bn in total revenue. That was just prior to the collapse of the physical cinema box office the following year, to £323.7m, as Covid restrictions hit hard. Box office takings bounced back to £595.5m in 2021, and £980.7m in 2022, only returning above £1bn in 2023, with a total of £1.06bn.

Industry Rebound and Changing Tactics

The numbers of films on release suggest that the production pipeline, 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 change in approach appears to be occurring. In 2025, 224 films were recorded as “saturation” releases (playing in over 250 venues simultaneously), versus 200 in 2024 and 188 in 2019. Data indicates that Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale had the biggest debut in the UK in 2025, in more than 750 cinemas.

The Year's Box Office Champion

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 resulted in box office the top spot, with a total of £56.88m.

“Despite only a slight annual rise in box office, 2025 undoubtedly marked a major milestone in the sector’s recovery after the challenges of recent years. There is strong confidence that the coming months will see significant further progress.”

The film also led the 2025 North American box office but finished fifth at the worldwide box office, far below the global leader, the Chinese animation Ne Zha 2.

Homegrown Hits and Specialty Releases

Among British productions, the fourth Bridget Jones film, Mad About the Boy, finished 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.