I don't know how it's in the US, but here in Europe where I live a ticket ranges between 16 to 20 Euro per seat. That's simply too much for most people.
Time is the real issue.
I'm in the UK and I'm at a point in life where I've got too many family orientated tasks. If I'm heading to the cinema it will be with family for a PG film (very few seem interesting to my child) or occasionally by myself to see a blockbuster (if they screen it for long enough for my free time to align with it).
They tried to turn a budget entertainment experience into a luxury media experience, in my mind, due to the expansion of home entertainment systems and screen sizes. It was the wrong half of the business to focus on. They should have improved convenience and the quality of their addons.
My grandfather in Buenos Aires used to book a double feature for the same reason. It was the only way he could get some sleep in the intolerably hot and humid summers there.
Here in the US (at least in my city), most movie theaters will charge $18-24 for a ticket to an evening show; the local indie/arthouse theater is a bit cheaper, at $15 for an evening show or $12 for a matinee.
The vast majority of the movies coming out of Hollywood currently simply aren’t worth that price to watch. Especially when you know that you can watch them on streaming usually within a year after release.
