While Imax saw a year-over-year drop 12% in revenue from last year’s record-setting success with “Oppenheimer,” films like “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Alien: Romulus” helped the premium format earn a net income of $13.9 million in the third quarter off $91.5 million in total revenue.
That’s an improvement from the $89 million in revenue and just $3.6 million in net income that Imax reported in Q2 of this year amid strike-induced production delays in Hollywood and the poor performance of May tentpole films like Universal’s “The Fall Guy” and Warner Bros.’ “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.”
Adjusted earnings per share came in at 35 cents, up from 7 cents the previous quarter.
Overall, Imax reported $239 million in global box office grosses, with Universal/Illumination’s “Despicable Me 4” and Warner Bros.’ “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” also among the top grossing films for the format.
“IMAX continues to set the table for a new, sustained era of growth with a 2025 and 2026 slate that is as promising as we’ve ever seen,” said Rich Gelfond, CEO of IMAX. “With an exceptional content pipeline, accelerating system installations, and robust sales activity worldwide, we are very well-positioned to execute and capitalize on the opportunity ahead over the next several years.”
Expecting a record 2025
Q4 2024 may see slightly lower revenue for Imax than expected due to the extremely poor performance of “Joker: Folie a Deux,” which only this past weekend crossed $200 million in global grosses after its predecessor became the first $1 billion R-rated hit in 2019.
But there are several films that are in place to make up for what “Joker 2” couldn’t earn, most notably Universal’s “Wicked,” which is seeing extremely strong pre-sales and is on its way to a potential $100 million-plus opening weekend. Paramount’s “Gladiator II” and Disney’s “Mufasa” are also among the films on Imax’s end-of-year slate list.
But the company expects even bigger things in 2025, projecting that it will have its biggest year ever at the box office with $1.2 billion in global grosses. Films like Warner Bros./DC Studios’ “Superman,” Disney/Marvel Studios’ “Fantastic 4: First Steps” and 20th Century’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash” are among the titles set to top the charts in the first year since 2019 that is not expected to be hampered by pandemic or strike delays in the release slate.
Meanwhile, Imax continues its campaign to expand its global auditorium footprint, installing 49 new systems worldwide this past quarter. In total, 119 new deals have been made by Imax with theater chains worldwide this year, putting it on pace to exceed the full-year total of 129 in 2023 and the high end of the 130-150 deals projected by the company at the start of the year.
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