Curtain call or comeback: What will it take to make Singapore cinemas great again?

- septiembre 06, 2025

September 07, 2025

Dear readers,

And then there were two — cinema operators, that is.

Moviegoing was once Singapore's favourite pastime, but no longer. With the closure of The Projector and Cathay Cineplexes, the golden age of cinema here feels long gone.

Elsewhere, though, the story is different. In France, cinema attendance is still climbing, buoyed by a national love of film as an art form.

In Thailand, box office numbers remain below pre-COVID levels, but its local film industry is thriving: Last year, for the first time, Thai films out-earned foreign ones, raking in 54 per cent of movie ticket sales.

These glimmers of hope suggest what Singapore could do to revive its own cinema scene, industry insiders say — though they admit it won't be easy.

This week's Big Read looks at what it would take to reverse cinema's decline here, and what the future of moviegoing might look like.

Yours faithfully,

Yasmine Yahya

Deputy Chief Editor, CNA Digital (TODAY, Lifestyle & Luxury)

Why cinemas are still thriving in some countries — and it's not such an easy formula to copy