Movie runtimes growing, with 173-minute epics now the norm

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 22 Oct, 18:33 · Archive

The average theatrical film has grown from 106 to 114 minutes since 1980, with some now exceeding three hours.

Movie runtimes are stretching across all genres, from big-budget spectacles to art house dramas. After analysing 36,431 theatrical releases from 1980 to 2025, researcher Stephen Follows found that average wide-release films have grown from 106 to 114 minutes.

Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' exemplifies the shift at 173 minutes. Despite the lengthy runtime, the film has become the second-highest grossing movie of the year with $1.8 billion in ticket sales and is a frontrunner for best picture at the Oscars, suggesting audiences are not deterred by extended runtimes.

The change has rippled through the film industry. Venice Film Festival boss Alberto Barbera noted that runtimes of two hours and fifteen minutes to two hours and thirty minutes have become 'the new international standard'. Barbera said the festival selection committee often sees films that would have benefited from being 10 to 20 minutes shorter, calling it both a programming annoyance and potentially detrimental to otherwise good films.

How it is being reported

• Inflation at the movies: Runtimes are longer, from 'The Odyssey' to 'You Can See Everything'Your bladder isn’t lying.Clickorlando · 22 Oct, 18:13
• Inflation at the movies: Runtimes are longer, from 'The Odyssey' to 'You Can See Everything'Your bladder isn’t lying.News4Jax · 22 Oct, 18:13

In this story: Christopher Nolan · Stephen Follows · Alberto Barbera · Venice Film Festival

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