Revenue of the motion picture and video industry in the U.S. 2021, by source

Throughout 2021, domestic licensing of rights to television programs was the leading source of revenue for the motion picture and video production and distribution industry in the United States, generating almost 21.6 billion U.S. dollars. Domestic licensing to motion pictures and contract production of audiovisual works followed, accounting for 10 billion and 8.7 billion dollars of the sector's total turnover.

A record-high and a changing trend

The overall revenue of the U.S. motion picture and video production and distribution sector reached an all-time high in 2021, increasing by over 14 percent and surpassing 81 billion dollars. That same year, motion pictures' domestic licensing to TV shows amassed twice as much as licensing to other films. The consecutive prevalence of TV over movies in this subsegment started in 2016. In the first half of the 2010s, only once licensing to programs generated revenue higher than licensing to other films.

Higher expenses and cinemas' struggle

The expenses of the film and video industries in the U.S. – including production and distribution, as well as exhibition, postproduction, and other related services – increased by 10 percent in 2021. The figure surpassed 66 billion dollars for the first time since 2013. The exhibition segment, however, continued to deliver results below pre-pandemic standards. In 2021, the cinema industry's leading revenue sources, ticket and concession sales, generated only 41 and 54 percent of the revenues recorded in 2019.