appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Tribune News Service

Want to get Generation Alpha into cinemas? Look to video games.
Kids still like to go to the movies, according to a new research report, but the franchises they care about are not the traditional Hollywood popcorn fare.
Seven of the top 10 entertainment franchises that the youngest generation of movie-goers cares about are video game properties, according to a recent study by the US-based National Research Group (NRG).
The top five titles that Gen Alpha kids – generally considered to be those aged 15 and under – say they talk most about were Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnite, Grand Theft Auto and Pokémon, all of which originated from the world of video games. The highest-ranked non-video-game property was Marvel and Disney’s Avengers, at No. 6.
Studios have started to catch on. This year’s A Minecraft Movie, based on the popular game where users build and explore different worlds, was such a huge success. The film, adapted by Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment for the big screen, grossed US$955 million at the global box office, according to Comscore. Young fans packed cinemas, cheering during scenes important to gamers.
“Gaming is a deeply important part of Gen Alpha culture because it provides an essential venue for socialisation,” said Fergus Navaratnam-Blair, NRG’s vice-president of trends and futures. “Social gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite give them the opportunity to spend time with their friends, build communities and develop a sense of their own identity.”

That could present a shift in the way cinemas and studios cater to Gen Alpha for their future survival. Compared with Gen Z, millennials and Gen X, a higher percentage of Gen Alpha members (38 per cent) said they would be interested in seeing a film in a cinema instead of waiting for it to come to a streaming service if their friends were talking about it, NRG said.
Nearly 60 per cent of Gen Alpha members said they enjoy watching movies in cinemas more than at home, according to NRG, which surveyed more than 6,000 US movie-goers in May and June. Most children surveyed said the reason they go to the cinema is to spend time with friends and family and “to make seeing the movie feel like a special event”.
“We are seeing the signs within this demographic that they do really value the experience of watching movies in theatres,” Navaratnam-Blair said. “The fact that they have grown up surrounded by phones, tablets, other sorts of devices – if anything, that seems to have made them more appreciative of the opportunities that they do get to switch up from all of that.”
Stories that resonate with Gen Alpha can come from franchises they are already familiar with, like Minecraft, or ones such as Wicked that inspire them to create fan fiction or show off their fandom by dressing up like the characters, he said.
Already, studios are marketing their films to reach younger consumers on platforms they frequent, including Roblox and TikTok.
Cinemas can help cater to Gen Alpha by making the viewing an experience, such as selling food that is matched to what characters are eating on screen, Navaratnam-Blair said.
Younger audiences can also still be attracted to seeing a movie in a cinema if it is a special event that happens after the title has started streaming. For example, many people attended singalong showings of the popular animated film KPop Demon Hunters in cinemas even after streaming it first on Netflix.
The singalong version of the film was the No. 1 movie in the US during the weekend it was briefly in cinemas, with an estimated US$18 million in ticket sales.
“This is a generation that does offer hope for the future of theatrical movie-going,” Navaratnam-Blair said. “We just need to understand what it is they’re looking for, that experience, and play into it in a way that gives them what they’re looking for out of that.”


Meet Gary Oldman’s wife, Gisele Schmidt, who hit the Emmys red carpet with the Slow Horses star

Why Oliver Stone’s Snowden film remains a terrifying surveillance warning 10 years on

Meet Ben Affleck’s nephew Indiana, who stars in dad Casey’s new film

Kirsten Dunst in Manolo Blahnik heels features in new Marie Antoinette book

American cinema

Gen Alpha’s entertainment trends revolve around video games. Why that matters for cinemas

Roblox is the top entertainment franchise for Gen Alpha, according to the National Research Group. Other video game properties in the top 10 include Minecraft, Pokemon, Fortnite, Grand Theft Auto, Mario and Madden. Photo: TNS

Gaming is an important part of Gen Alpha culture because of the socialisation opportunities it provides, Fergus Navaratnam-Blair says. Photo: Reuters

Who is Zhong Kui, demon hunter, ‘King of Ghosts’ and Black Myth’s new title character?

Chinese deity Zhong Kui in a still from a promotional video for the upcoming video game Black Myth: Zhong Kui. Photo: Game Science

Zhong Kui has long been a popular subject in Chinese paintings. Photo: Ashmolean Museum

An actor dressed as Zhong Kui (centre) performs at a temple fair in Taipei. Photo: Shutterstock

A still from Black Myth: Zhong Kui shows a large tigerlike beast on which Zhong Kui rides. Photo: Game Science

How Sega’s Sonic movies are setting the former gaming giant up for a glorious comeback

People attend the opening ceremony of Japanese video game and entertainment company Sega’s first flagship merchandise store in Japan, in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, on July 16, 2025. Photo: AFP

Shuji Utsumi, president and COO of Sega, speaks at the opening ceremony of the company’s first flagship merchandise store in Japan, in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, on July 16, 2025. Photo: AFP

Sega character Shadow the Hedgehog is seen at the opening ceremony of its first flagship merchandise store in Japan on July 16, 2025. Photo: AFP

Models of Sega characters are seen at the opening ceremony of its first flagship merchandise store in Japan. Photo: AFP

13 of the best new K-dramas to watch in September 2025, including Tempest with Jun Ji-hyun

Jun Ji-hyun in a still from  Disney+ series Tempest, a new K-drama series streaming from September. Photo: Disney+

A promotional poster for No Mercy, starring Lee Joo-young (centre).

The Toxic Avenger with Game of Thrones’ Peter Dinklage and Kevin Bacon finally gets cinema run

Peter Dinklage, of Game of Thrones fame, stars as Toxie in Toxic Avenger, which is finally getting released two years after its film festival premiere. Photo: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Macon Blair is the director of The Toxic Avenger reboot. Photo: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

(From left) The Toxic Avenger actors Elijah Wood, Taylour Paige and Jacob Tremblay. Photo: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Lloyd Kaufman, creator of The Toxic Avenger, says the new film is better than the original. Photo: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Elijah Wood was thrilled with the way his character Fritz looked. Photo: Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Lifestyle

Entertainment

Seven of the top 10 entertainment franchises trending with Gen Alpha movie-goers are video game properties like Roblox and Minecraft


Seven of the top 10 entertainment franchises trending with Gen Alpha movie-goers are video game properties like Roblox and Minecraft.


Gen Alpha’s entertainment trends revolve around video games. Why that matters for cinemas

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Seven of the top 10 entertainment franchises trending with Gen Alpha movie-goers are video game properties like Roblox and Minecraft

Seven of the top 10 entertainment franchises trending with Gen Alpha movie-goers are video game properties like Roblox and Minecraft