Action figures have been in decline since 2009 due to the reduced power of movies to move sales and other factors, according to TDMonthly.   The category has declined from around $1.6 billion per year in 2009 to an estimated $1.2 billion in 2013.   

The report listed a number of factors that could be contributing to the decline in the category.  First, while box office is up for movies with action figure lines, sales of those lines are down.  That may be because blockbusters with action figure lines are cannibalizing each other; the number of such films is steadily increasing. 

Another factor is that movie attendance and cable viewership by kids is declining.  The report mentions that there’s a correlation between the decline in movie attendance by kids and the increase in home streaming of movies; we note that may mean that the same number of people are seen the films and TV shows, but that they’re viewing them at times that may not match the release of the associated toys. 

And the growth of Skylanders and, more recently Disney Infinity (see “Disney Launching Collectible Game Figures”) may be siphoning some money that would otherwise be spent on action figures.  Skylanders accounted for around $500 million in sales last year, more than the decline in action figures over the past four years.