The global box office has been at a standstill for weeks now, but things are particularly bad in China, which was the first major moviegoing market to have its theaters close down. Chinese movie theaters have had their doors closed since mid-January and there is still no telling when they might be able to reopen. With that, it's now expected that the box office in the country will take a devastatingly steep plunge.

According to China's National Film Administration, it's expected that the total box office for 2020 will decline by more than $4.2 billion. In 2019, the country's box office totaled $9.2 billion. To further demonstrate just how brutal that figure is, the global box office generated a total of $42.5 billion last year. That means roughly 10 percent of last year's global ticket sales will be lost from Chinese movie theaters alone. China is the second-largest moviegoing nation in the world behind only the United States. So this dramatic decline in revenue will undoubtedly have an effect on the industry as a whole.

Theaters in the U.S. have been shut down since mid-March, with major chains hoping to open back up sometime in July. In the meantime, studios have been experimenting with releasing movies on premium VOD, such as Universal Pictures with Trolls World Tour. This has caused something of a rift between studios and exhibitors. It has been a problem in China as well. Wang Xiaohui, executive deputy minister of the Central Propaganda Department, said that maintaining the theatrical release window will be important moving forward.

"It is necessary to maintain the rule of the release window, adhere to the spirit of contracts, and strengthen one's sense of integrity."

Movie Theaters in China have already started to fold as a result of the shutdown. There was a brief moment where some theaters began reopening in areas of the country that aren't as densely populated. However, that ended quickly and theaters have remained closed ever since. Wang Xiaohui, speaking further, explained that he feels that consolidation may be the answer going forward if these businesses hope to survive.

"We must help cinemas' [business] grow bigger and stronger through reorganization, encourage cross-regional reorganization."

One of the biggest questions facing the movie business globally is just how willing people will be to return to theaters once theaters open again. Theaters will be required to take additional precautions to ensure guest safety and will have to limit auditorium capacity to keep social distancing measures in place. That, on its own, will limit overall box office potential. If people aren't willing, on the whole, to risk going out in public to catch a movie in a theater, this situation could become increasingly dire as the months roll on. $4.2 billion could end up being a drop in the bucket. This news comes to us via Variety.