Imax Tops $600M In Q3 Box Office So Far On ‘The Odyssey’; CEO Shrugs Off Industry M&A – “Our Primary Relationships Are With Filmmakers” — SkimNews
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- Imax has crossed $600M in global box office receipts so far in Q3 — still early in the quarter — and CEO Rich Gelfond noted that Imax's previous best quarter (Q3 2023) was only in the mid-$300s range.
- The Odyssey, Universal and Christopher Nolan's film, is the main engine behind the surge; Gelfond said Imax's prior single-film record was $230M for Avatar's initial run, and The Odyssey is now 'knocking on the door of half a billion' despite playing on roughly 1% of the world's screens.
- Imax earns roughly 18 cents on every box office dollar, splitting the take with theaters and sometimes studios depending on the exhibitor deal structure.
- Upcoming Imax slate includes Dune: Part Three (already among the highest pre-sales in Imax's 60-year history three months from release), Sony's Resident Evil, Brad Pitt's Cliff Booth from David Fincher opening November 25 with a two-week exclusive Imax window, Greta Gerwig's Narnia in early 2027, Michael B. Jordan's The Thomas Crown Affair for Amazon MGM in March, and Sony's four Beatles movies starting in 2028.
- Gelfond downplayed industry M&A risk at the conference, saying 'our primary relationships are with filmmakers' and confirming Imax has talked with David Ellison and Paramount about ramping up Imax productions if that merger goes through, citing past work on Mission Impossible and Top Gun: Maverick.
- Imax's popcorn buckets sold out a test run of 2,500 units within 90 minutes, and Gelfond said merchandising will be a focus area in the company's 2027 plans as a new revenue stream beyond ticket sales.
- Gelfond declared superhero fatigue, saying those films no longer carry the 'wow, I've got to see this in Imax' appeal and that Imax is diversifying into sports, music (an Oasis concert is coming), and local-language fare after releasing 120 pieces of content last year.
Why it matters: Imax is generating more than double its previous best quarter on a single film, confirming that premium large-format screens remain a powerful box office driver even as overall theatrical attendance struggles. Gelfond's explicit 'filmmakers over studios' posture means Imax sees itself as insulated from the Paramount/Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery merger drama — as long as Nolan, Fincher, Gerwig, and Kosinski keep delivering tentpoles to its 1% of global screens.
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