Blockbuster films such as Avatar and Alice in Wonderland and the sale of 3D glasses have helped boost revenues at Cineworld, it said today.
The group, which has 77 cinemas in the UK, reported strong trading during the 18 weeks to May 6 with total revenues up 13.9% on the same period of 2009.
It said the performance had been driven by a 14.6% jump in box office takings, following the release of films such as Avatar - the highest grossing movie of all time.
Cineworld dismissed concerns that it would suffer due to the football World Cup, saying major films such as Robin Hood, The Prince of Persia and Sex and The City 2, would all be released before it started, in anticipation of fewer people going to the cinema during the tournament itself.
As a result of this scheduling, it expects its performance during the first half to be "comfortably ahead" of the same period of 2009, although overall growth will be below the level seen so far this year.
