09/01/2026 - Despite overall attendance dipping slightly year on year, theatres recorded their highest audience levels in a decade, underscoring a shift towards curated and event-driven experiences

In 2025, Dutch cinemas and arthouse movie theatres collectively welcomed more than 28 million admissions, according to figures released on 6 January by the Netherlands’ Association of Cinemas and Film Theatres (NVBF) and NVPI Film. While overall attendance has dipped slightly year on year, movie theatres recorded their highest audience levels in a decade, underlining a continuing shift towards curated and event-driven cinema experiences.

A total of 28 million tickets were sold across the country, marking a 3% decrease compared to 2024, while overall box office takings totalled €308 million, down by 1%. The market saw 542 theatrical releases, including 84 Dutch titles – 19 more films than the previous year – spanning blockbusters, arthouse productions, animation and live action. The market share of domestic films slipped from 17% to 14%.

According to Ron Sterk, chairman of the NVBF, Dutch audiences are becoming increasingly selective in how and why they go to the cinema. “People are making more of a conscious choice about which films they want to experience on the big screen, and how,” he commented. “The shared experience, comfort, special screenings, side programming and events all play a part. A cinema visit is increasingly turning into a night out in and of itself. Thanks to a growing network of modern multiplexes and revitalised movie theatres, the cinematic experience remains attractive to a broad audience.”

Among the year’s most successful releases, A Minecraft Movie emerged as the biggest hit of 2025, attracting close to one million cinema-goers and topping the annual ranking. The live-action remake Lilo & Stitch followed closely with over 940,000 admissions.

Mufasa: The Lion King, which premiered at the end of 2024, recorded 1.3 million admissions overall, including more than 800,000 visits in 2025, securing third place in the annual chart. Meanwhile, Avatar: Fire & Ash had already attracted 564,000 admissions by the year’s end, ranking seventh among the most visited films of the year.

Arthouse movie theatres continued their upward trajectory, welcoming 3.9 million visitors in 2025, a 12% increase compared to the previous year and the highest figure in ten years. This growth has been driven by strong contextual programming, including post-screening discussions, introductions, film lectures, one-off screenings and classic revivals, alongside expanding film education initiatives.

The most popular title in movie theatres was Marianne Elliott's The Salt Path, with 179,000 admissions in movie theatres alone and 335,000 admissions overall. In second place came Babygirl, written, directed and co-produced by Halina Reijn, which attracted over half a million admissions across both multiplexes and movie theatres. The third most popular arthouse title was Mike van Diem's Our Girls, which also opened the Netherlands Film Festival.

For their part, Dutch productions performed particularly well in the second half of the year, with October standing out as the strongest month, when 35% of all admissions were for domestic titles. The most successful Dutch film of 2025 was the aforementioned Our Girls, which recorded 317,000 admissions, followed closely by De Film van Rutger, Thomas en Paco with 295,000 tickets sold.

Seasonal family titles also performed strongly: together, Martijn Koevoets' De Club van Sinterklaas Film: Een Dolle Beestenboel and Lucio Messercola's De Grote Sinterklaasfilm en de Verdwenen Verlanglijstjes attracted over half a million admissions.

Commenting on the year’s results, NVPI Film board member Klaas de Jager underlined the breadth of domestic production. “In 2025, there was genuinely a lot to choose from, including when it came to Dutch films. The top ten shows a wide diversity of genres aimed at very different audiences. There really was something for everyone.”