First of all, I think general audience members are becoming increasingly more selective about what they're going to see in theaters. This is for a multitude of reasons, but I'm going to break down some of the major sources of the reluctance to go to the theater. I think it primarily ties back to the idea of convenience and the infinite availability of options.
Streaming has become more and more popular as time goes on, and the average movie goer probably questions why they should leave the house and go to a theater where they have to deal with disrespectful movie goers (something you can read more about in my other post about Theater Etiquette) when they could easily watch whatever's available via Netflix or Hulu in the comfort of their own home. You're then entitled to an infinite amount of content for much less. You pay a subscription fee and are able to access an insurmountable volume of movies and television.
On top of this, the release window between theatrical releases and home media releases continues to condense. These days, movies are coming out on digital markets weeks-to-an-entire-month before a physical retail release and about two-three months after hitting theaters. Why go pay to see something in theaters now when you can just wait a few months and just rent/buy the film to watch as much as you'd like for a better price? I personally think that the cinema is the best environment to experience film, and there are certain films that just HAVE to be seen in theaters, but there are some movies I'm not opposed to waiting and catching on home media.
Another factor is the recent rise of television. There are television series like Game of Thrones or Stranger Things that operate on the same level as feature length blockbusters. The quality of storytelling in these series is practically on-par with the best blockbusters coming to cinemas, while the quality of feature-length films have been spotty these past few years with mixed reactions to some huge hits, so word of mouth is also becoming more and more important as a guiding compass to know what's worth watching. Positive/negative word of mouth can either boost a film to reaching unimaginable heights or kill it on arrival. The increased interconnectivity through social media has only strengthened the importance of word-of-mouth in recent years, and I think that points to part of the problem. There are just so many alternatives that can be comfortably consumed at home, so it's difficult to justify leaving the house these days.
However, when average movie-goers are motivated to go see something they turn out in droves! If the franchise is big enough, you can open it at literally anytime of the year and it'll turn out to be a huge hit. Blockbuster "seasons" are practically non-existent now, as there's no longer a definite time frame to release a blockbuster. This spring was basically an early blockbuster season, last month was booming with It (2017), Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and The LEGO Ninjago Movie, and there have also been some big blockbusters positioned around February these past few years like Kingsman: The Secret Service, Deadpool, John Wick: Chapter 2, and The LEGO Batman Movie.
To sum-up my thoughts, I feel Hollywood's in a safe environment for the time being thanks to blockbusters projecting an event-esque atmosphere. However, home theater technology is ever evolving and things like Netflix and Amazon have encouraged people to stay at home, so perhaps Hollywood needs to start innovating the theatrical experience to draw average movie-goers out of their homes. That's all I have to say on the matter, but feel free to add your own input in the comments down below!
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