- Though the Ryan Gosling sci-fi epic gave Imax a strong finish to the quarter, Chinese grosses slipped compared to last year’s “Ne Zha 2”-fueled windfall
- Revenue of $81.4 million tops Wall Street’s $80 million estimate
- Imax CEO Rich Gelfond is gradually resuming his duties after a pneumonia diagnosis earlier this year.
Though Amazon MGM’s “Project Hail Mary” gave Imax a strong finish to its first quarter, some underperforming titles on the premium format like “Mercy” contributed to a 6% drop in year-over-year revenue in Imax’s latest quarterly earnings report.
The company reported $81.4 million in revenue, a drop from the $86.7 million in the first quarter of 2025, and earnings of 17 cents per share. Those beat consensus Wall Street projections of $80 million in revenue and 15 cents per share.
Overall box office grosses for Imax reached $260 million for the quarter, with Christmas holdover “Avatar: Fire and Ash” being the top grosser followed by “Project Hail Mary” and the Chinese blockbuster “Pegasus 3.”
Though Imax saw a 75% year-over-year increase in domestic grosses and a 60% increase in non-Chinese markets, the overall total still fell 13% from the $298 million recorded in the prior year quarter. This was to be expected as “Pegasus 3,” which grossed nearly $650 million at the Chinese box office, was still well short of the animation record $2.27 billion grossed last year by “Ne Zha 2,” which stands as Imax’s highest grossing film ever in China.
Expansion continues
As it has for the past several years, Imax touted its rapid overseas expansion, making deals to add 42 auditoriums across 10 countries, including 10 screens for the Australian theater chain Hoyts Cinemas.
“IMAX continues to build on the momentum of its record-breaking 2025 and further establish itself as the premier global platform for blockbuster entertainment. As we enter one of the most productive periods of the moviegoing year with among the most promising slates we’ve seen, we look forward to delivering a record $1.4 billion in global box office for the full year and driving network expansion worldwide,” said CFO Natasha Fernandes.
The company will also soon see the full-time return of its CEO, Rich Gelfond, after he took a medical leave of absence following a pneumonia diagnosis.
“My recovery from pneumonia is progressing well. I have been discharged from the hospital and will continue to focus on my health in the coming weeks. I want to thank my doctors, my family, the team at IMAX, and everyone for their support. As I transition back from medical leave, I am gradually re-engaging in the business and involved in all strategic decisions at IMAX. The management team is doing an outstanding job and will continue with their day-to-day responsibilities,” said Gelfond in a statement.
Staying on Target
Though Chinese grosses returned to their average, Imax maintained their pre-year projections of a company record $1.4 billion in global grosses. Through this past Sunday, the Hollywood duo of “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” and “Michael” combined for $61.7 million and counting in Imax grosses, with films like “Mortal Kombat II,” “The Mandalorian & Grogu,” “Disclosure Day” and “Toy Story 5” still to come on the format in the remainder of Q2.
That will lead into a second half of 2026 where films like “The Odyssey” — the first film shot entirely with Imax cameras — “Godzilla Minus Zero,” “Ramayana,” and “Dune: Part Three” are set to be shown on Imax screens.