Summer movies ratings slump for 2014

The North American film industry has had its worst summer since 1997, with ticket sales declining by 15 percent since last summer. (Video via Sony Pictures)

To put things into perspective, this graph from box office tracking company, Rentrak, shows just how drastic the drop was.

The New York Times reports that analysts believe there's a few reasons for the drop. For one "viewing distractions like the World Cup and scuttled release plans for films like "Fast and Furious 6" and Pixar's "Good Dinosaur," which both had production problems." The outlet also speculates a lack in creativity could have contributed to the lower than the usual numbers.

Pointing to Tom Cruise's "Edge of Tomorrow" about a robot alien invasion.

Yeah, we've seen that storyline a few times before. But it is notable that "Edge of Tomorrow" earned about three times more overseas than in the U.S. and Canada.

And then there was "Hercules."

Which came out just seven months after "The Legend of Hercules." Both movies were about — you guessed it, Hercules.

One analyst told Variety, "You can't chalk it up to anything other than a weak slate of movies that didn't resonate with consumers. ... We were expecting poor numbers to start with, and it got a lot worse."

The Telegraph notes there wasn't really a standout hit this summer to help boost sales. "For the first time since 2001, no single movie made $300 million and none of them even came close. In July alone box office receipts were down 30 per cent."

The summer's biggest hit, "Guardians of the Galaxy," was the only movie to make much of a dent, bringing in more than $250 million.

But it was a steep plunge to number two,"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," which only earned $145 million.

However, the chief analyst at BoxOffice.com told Vox there might be an upside to the downward slope.

"The movie industry is cyclical, and we're definitely in a down year, but that has a lot to do with the fact that 2015's slate is so impressive. ... Many of the strongest franchises are lined up for 2015, and 2014 has suffered as a result."

Some of the films slated for release next year include, "Jurassic World," Pixar's "Inside Out," "Ant-Man," and "Assassin's Creed."

This video includes an image from Getty Images.