Vietnamese audiences spend $213mn on cinema tickets in 2025

The figure marked the highest box office revenue ever recorded in the country’s film industry.

The surge in revenue was driven by the sale of more than 70 million cinema tickets throughout the year.

Total ticket sales rose 29 percent year on year, also setting a new record for the market.

With this scale, Vietnam’s cinema market ranked second in Southeast Asia, after Indonesia.

The Indonesian film market also secured a place among the world’s top 10 ticket-selling markets in 2025.

In 2025, Vietnam recorded an average movie attendance rate of 0.7 visits per person, meaning that on average, each Vietnamese citizen went to the movies 0.7 times per year.

The figure reflected a steadily growing habit of theater-going among the public.

However, it still lagged behind other markets.

Singapore, for example, recorded 1.3 visits per capita, while Malaysia reached 1.0.

The gap suggests significant room for growth and highlights the potential for Vietnam’s movie industry to expand further, with ambitions of eventually entering the world’s top 10 cinema markets in terms of audience attendance.

Blockbuster films have also become increasingly prominent in Vietnam.

The number of blockbuster movies rose to 50 in 2025 from 41 in 2019.

During the same period, the average revenue per blockbuster increased sharply to VND69 billion ($2.6 million) in 2025 from VND18 billion ($684,515) in 2019.

Between 2023 and 2025, several films also surpassed a revenue mark of VND300 billion ($11.4 million), demonstrating the growing commercial power of major domestic productions.

These blockbuster films are gradually becoming a key driver of box office growth.

In many international markets, blockbusters serve as the backbone of theatrical revenue, and Vietnam appears to be moving in the same direction as more large-scale productions enter development.

In 2026, Vietnam is expected to release around 80 films, the highest number ever produced in a single year.

Yet, the figure remains modest compared with larger film markets.

Indonesia, currently Southeast Asia’s most developed film industry, produced 152 films in 2024 and is projected to reach 200 productions in 2028.

Understanding the audience

At a recent strategic partner conference organized by CGV Vietnam, the cinema chain shared findings from customer surveys that reveal notable changes in Vietnamese moviegoing habits.

One key insight is that audiences often do not rush to theaters when a film is first released.

Instead, many wait for reviews on social media or feedback from others before deciding to buy a ticket.

The trend underscores the growing importance of film marketing and word-of-mouth, particularly recommendations from friends and acquaintances, in shaping audience choices.

Several years ago, many Vietnamese filmmakers openly admitted they struggled to fully grasp audience tastes.

However, with improved research tools, audience analytics, and greater industry experience, the market is now seeing the emergence of filmmakers who appear to understand viewers more clearly.

For instance, director and comedian Tran Thanh has maintained a perfect commercial success rate with his films, while projects directed by Ly Hai in recent years have also achieved consistently strong box office results.

Increasingly, film producers are moving away from instinct-driven filmmaking and adopting audience research before launching projects.