Imax ended the year with its best Q4 since 2017 thanks to ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and a Chinese blockbuster

• Imax ended the year with $638 million in revenue globally.
• It had its best Q4 since 2017 and the quarter was up from 2019’s Q4.
• It’s thanks to tentpole movies like “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Dune.”

Imax ended 2021 on a high note as the larger theatrical industry continues to struggle amid the coronavirus pandemic (notwithstanding “Spider-Man: No Way Home”).

The company, which specializes in high-quality cameras and projection systems, said on Monday that it earned $638 million globally from its theaters in 2021, double its 2020 total.

$277 million of that came from Q4, its best fourth quarter since 2017, thanks largely to “No Way Home” and “Dune.” Q4 was up 15% compared to the same period in 2019. It follows the best October ever for Imax.

“There seems to be an increase in demand from audiences to see movies in the Imax format,” Imax CEO Richard Gelfond told Insider during an interview in November. 

During the pandemic, the most successful movies have been franchise tentpoles like “No Way Home,” “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” and “Shang-Chi,” which has been to Imax’s advantage.

Imax has also benefited from the success of the Chinese theatrical market, which is now the world’s biggest. “The Battle of Lake Changjin,” a Chinese war film and the No. 2 highest-grossing movie in the world in 2021 behind “No Way Home,” was filmed with Imax cameras. 

The company currently has 700 Imax screens in China, with 250 signed deals for new ones in place. Gelfond said that the market could support as many as 1,300 Imax screens. 

Below are the top five movies for Imax in Q4:

5. “Eternals”

Imax total: $25.2 million

Domestic total: $164.7 million

Worldwide total: $401.5 million

4. “The Battle at Lake Changjin”

Imax total: $31.6 million

Worldwide total: $902.5 million ($899.4 million in China)

3. “No Time to Die”

Imax total: $43.7 million

Domestic total: $160.8 million

Worldwide total: $774.0 million

2. “Dune”

Imax total: $43.9 million

Domestic total: $107.2 million

Worldwide total: $396.1 million

1. “Spider-Man: No Way Home”

Imax total: $83.1 million

Domestic total: $613.6 million

Worldwide total: $1.37 billion