Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer helps IMAX net $35 million from just 740 screens globally in opening weekend

Entertainment technology provider IMAX Corporation—that represents only 1 per cent of screens worldwide but makes up 11 per cent ticket sales—has said that it recorded $35 million debut on only 740 screens worldwide. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer made it one of the company’s biggest weekends ever at the global box office and biggest IMAX opening weekend of all time in India.

“Oppenheimer is an undeniable demonstration of a paradigm shift in moviegoing, with IMAX taking a commanding share of global box office as audiences show a clear preference for experiences that transcend the ordinary in cinema,” said Rich Gelfond, CEO of IMAX. “As he has done throughout his career, Christopher Nolan pushed the boundaries of IMAX technology to deliver unforgettable storytelling with Oppenheimer and audiences are responding in numbers we’ve not seen in our 50-year history.” The film proved to deliver a historic weekend for IMAX, with its global network scoring $46.4 million worldwide—the fourth best weekend box office ever for IMAX.

The movie got IMAX its biggest share ever of a film’s global opening weekend box office with 20% of total receipts. Shot with IMAX Film Cameras, Universal Pictures’ Oppenheimer set several IMAX records including the biggest opening weekend of 2023 globally. “Given the strength of our pre-sales, the ‘A’ CinemaScore, and the historical multiples of Christopher Nolan’s films, we believe this is just the beginning of what ‘Oppenheimer’ can accomplish at the global box office,” Gelfond adds. “Around the world, we’ve seen sellouts at 4:00 a.m. shows and people travelling hours across borders to see ‘Oppenheimer’ in IMAX 70mm — this is a phenomenon beyond compare in IMAX and we’re just getting started,” he said.

IMAX is a global innovator in entertainment technology, combining proprietary software, architecture, and equipment making it amongst the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. In North America Oppenheimer netted $21.1 million, netting IMAX a record 26.2% share of the domestic box office collection from only 411 screens. The figure marked a $51,000 per screen average for the film at IMAX locations in the United States and Canada. Internationally, Oppenheimer opened to $13.9 million—14.8% of the box office on only 329 screens.

Oppenheimer scored the biggest IMAX opening weekend ever in diverse markets like India, Mexico, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Czech Republic. Thirty-four international markets overall posted a top-five all-time IMAX opening weekend with the film.