In 2023, the year of "Renaissance" and "The Eras," concert films reigned supreme at the cinemas. Taylor Swift (33) and Beyoncé (42) may have filled massive halls on their mega tours, but only a fortunate few managed to attend these spectacular live shows. To satiate the hunger of the millions left out, these artists took to producing elaborate concert films.
Taylor Swift, who was crowned "Person of the Year 2023," released her film, "Taylor Swift: Eras Tour," in cinemas just as she toured on August 3 to 5 at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles. This nearly three-hour masterpiece broke yet another sales record with its theatrical release across over 100 countries on October 13. It grossed an astounding 92.8 million US dollars in its opening weekend in the USA alone, setting a new record for concert films' best starts.
The enormous demand for tickets caused the ticketing apps to crash, mirroring the chaos witnessed during the sale of her highly-coveted tour tickets. Amused by the situation, AMC admitted, "AMC is aware that no ticketing system in history seems to have been able to meet the enormous demand from Taylor Swift fans when tickets are first released."
Days after Swift's success, Beyoncé, Swift's competitor and colleague, stepped up to the challenge with "Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé." This concert film covered her six-month "Renaissance World Tour," offered behind-the-scenes glimpses, and narrated the four-year preparations for the tour in documentary form. Although it did not achieve comparable mega-blockbuster status, it still managed to gross 21.8 million US dollars in its first three days in North America.
The concert film boom witnessed in 2023 is being hailed as a post-Covid phenomenon. During the pandemic, when live events were absent due to protective measures, acts such as Miley Cyrus (31), James Blunt (49), Coldplay, and Nick Cave (66) had simply performed for cameras instead, livestreaming their concerts to their fans.
Joining the league of these superstars, Billie Eilish (22) showcased her concert film "Live At The O2 (Extended Cut)" in over 2,000 cinemas on January 27. Metallica also resonated with fans worldwide through the cinema event "Metallica: M72 World Tour Live From Arlington, TX" on August 19 and 21. To celebrate its 40th anniversary, the legendary concert film "Stop Making Sense" by avant-garde band Talking Heads returned to cinemas in 2023 with a 4K remaster.
As concert films continue to invade the cinemas, the demand for immersive music experiences grows. Artists are experimenting with unique elements in their performances, incorporating surprise acoustic sets, visually stunning costumes, and intriguing set designs, ensuring that concert films stay in trend. In fact, Babymetal's "Babymetal: Legend-43 The Movie" marks the band's final world tour performance, and Weezer's concert film, "Weezer’s Voyage to the Blue Planet: The Concert Film," showcasing their 2024 tour celebrating their debut album's 30th anniversary, is committed to being livestreamed on Oct 13 and 14, 2025, at Moment.co.[1][2][4]
The economic impact of these concert films transcends just ticket sales, offering a significant boost to local economies and the music industry as a whole. Beyoncé's and Swift's concert films alone have broken sales records, a testament to their cultural impact.
But more than just a commercial success, concert films have influenced the mentalities of artists and audiences alike. By providing an opportunity to relive and share the precious experience of a live concert, artists push themselves to create experiences that both dazzle and inspire, and fans stay eager to immerse themselves in a world where music know no bounds.
