Box Office Shocker: Movie Attendance Falls To Lowest Level in 16 Years

As Hollywood heads into the final weekend of the year, there's no chance left of closing the yearly gap in domestic box office revenues, while attendance has tumbled to a troubling 16-year low.

According to projections, domestic box office revenues for Jan. 1-Dec. 31 will reach roughly $10.2 billion, down 3.6 percent from the $10.58 billion collected in 2010. That means an estimated 1.28 billion people went to the movies in 2011 — the lowest turnout since 1995, when 1.211 billion people showed up at their local theaters.