Sony Pictures, with a recent market capitalisation of approximately $124.34 billion USD, has stepped into 2026 like a full-blown theatrical storm, with back-to-back releases turning the year into a celebration of big-screen spectacle. The year already feels like a franchise-fuelled victory lap, one that could define cinema’s comeback with scale, nostalgia, and crowd-pulling power. Yet right in the middle of this momentum, Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO of Sony Motion Picture Group, has thrown a sharp question at theatres, calling out endless advertising that is quietly killing the very marketing it is meant to build.

So why is Sony’s boss brutally calling out theatres worldwide over excessive ads, and what does it mean for the future of cinema? Here is everything you need to know.

While calling out the growing clutter of trailers and commercials that stretch close to 30 minutes before a film even begins, Tom Rothman sharply urged theatre owners to rethink the entire pre-show experience and cut down excessive advertising. Taking the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, the Sony Motion Picture Group CEO turned the spotlight on exhibitors, pushing for shorter, tighter pre-shows as he unveiled the studio’s upcoming slate at the Colosseum.

“Get rid of the endless advertising and substantially shorten the long pre-shows,”  Rothman said at CinemaCon.

While building on his argument, Rothman pointed to a clear shift in audience behaviour that is quietly hurting the very purpose of these pre-shows. He noted that frequent moviegoers are now deliberately arriving nearly 30 minutes late to skip the barrage of ads, a habit made easier than ever with reserved seating. As a result, trailers are increasingly being missed, turning what should be powerful marketing moments into wasted opportunities that fail to reach the audience at all.

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Meanwhile, as the CEO’s push begins to feel less like a complaint and more like a necessary reset for theatres, Sony Pictures is quietly stepping into 2026 with the intent to script a historic year.

With a staggering $58 billion global box office already set in motion by 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, and Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling, on March 20th, Sony Pictures has kicked off 2026 with unstoppable momentum, led by its most anticipated title, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, bringing back Tom Holland on July 31, 2026, set four years after No Way Home. Adding to the lineup, Jumanji 3 is ready to reunite Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, and Kevin Hart for a December 2026 spectacle that promises scale, chaos, and crowd-pulling nostalgia, alongside a darker reinvention with Resident Evil, directed by Zach Cregger, set to hit screens on September 18, 2026.

Beyond the spectacle, Sony is also placing its bets on storytelling that stretches beyond franchises, with projects like The Breadwinner, Klara and the Sun, and The Nightingale adding depth to an already explosive slate. However, spreading its wings even further, Sony Pictures Animation’s GOAT has emerged as the biggest domestic release in February, further strengthening the studio’s expanding cinematic dominance across genres and formats.

With Sony doubling down on its 2026 slate packed with highly anticipated titles, Tom Rothman’s stance feels hard to ignore, as his call urges theatres to stay accountable and ensure that marketing efforts and audience engagement are not lost to excessive advertising.

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