LOS ANGELES, Dec. 1, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IMAX Corporation (Nasdaq:IMAX) (TSX:IMX) and Warner Bros. Pictures today announced that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I, posted strong second weekend results, generating $5.4 million in domestic box office on 239 IMAX screens over three days from Friday, November 26 through Sunday November 28. The film's overall three-day domestic gross box office was $50.3 million. Internationally, the IMAX release generated a three-day total of $2.6 million on 108 screens, for a total second weekend performance of approximately $8.0 million. IMAX's total worldwide box office to date for the film is approximately $31 million.
"The continued strength of this film, which is playing on more IMAX screens globally than any other IMAX release before it, demonstrates that whether the film is in 2D or 3D, consumers continue to want to experience blockbuster movies in IMAX," said Richard L. Gelfond, CEO, IMAX Corporation. "The film will continue to open on additional IMAX screens worldwide, and we're optimistic that the unique experience of Harry Potter in IMAX will appeal to audiences well into the holiday season."
"Our expanded IMAX network has enabled us to help fuel another fantastic weekend," added Greg Foster, Chairman and President, IMAX Filmed Entertainment. "We're particularly pleased with the performance overseas, where the film's momentum is holding very well in markets such as China, Japan, Holland and the UK. We also had a very strong opening in France, where the film played exclusively in IMAX theatres the two days prior to its conventional release. The strong legs demonstrated this weekend in both domestic and international markets bodes well for the weeks ahead."
International Highlights to date include:
- Japan – over $187,500 per IMAX screen average
- China - $76,500 per IMAX screen average
- Holland – $141,000 per IMAX screen average
- France – $117,000 per IMAX screen average
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I: The IMAX Experience has been digitally re-mastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® with proprietary IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-mastering) technology for presentation in IMAX®. The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX's customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique immersive environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie.
About Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final adventure in the Harry Potter film series, is a motion picture event, told in two full-length parts. Part 1 begins as Harry, Ron and Hermione set out on their perilous mission to track down and destroy the Horcruxes--the keys to Voldemort's immortality. On their own, without the guidance or protection of their professors, the three friends must now rely on one another more than ever. But there are Dark Forces in their midst that threaten to tear them apart. Meanwhile, the Wizarding world has become a dangerous place for all enemies of the Dark Lord. The long-feared war has begun and Voldemort's Death Eaters seize control of the Ministry of Magic and even Hogwarts, terrorizing and arresting anyone who might oppose them. But the one prize they still seek is the one most valuable to Voldemort: Harry Potter. The Chosen One has become the hunted one as Voldemort's followers search for Harry with orders to bring him to Dark Lord...alive. Harry's only hope is to find the Horcruxes before Voldemort finds him. But as he searches for clues, he uncovers an old and almost forgotten tale--the legend of the Deathly Hallows. And if the legend turns out to be true, it could give Voldemort the ultimate power he seeks. Little does Harry know that his future has already been decided by his past when, on that fateful day, he became "the Boy Who Lived." No longer just a boy, Harry Potter is drawing ever closer to the task for which he has been preparing since the day he first stepped into Hogwarts: the ultimate battle with Voldemort.
Warner Bros. Pictures presents A Heyday Films Production, a David Yates Film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1. The film stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson. The film is directed by David Yates and produced by David Heyman, David Barron and J.K. Rowling. Steve Kloves wrote the screenplay, based on the novel by J.K. Rowling. Lionel Wigram served as executive producer.
About IMAX Corporation
IMAX Corporation is one of the world's leading entertainment technology companies, specializing in immersive motion picture technologies. The worldwide IMAX network is among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe, with IMAX theatres delivering the world's best cinematic presentations using proprietary IMAX, IMAX 3D, and IMAX DMR technology. IMAX DMR is the Company's groundbreaking digital re-mastering technology that allows it to digitally transform virtually any conventional motion picture into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience. The IMAX brand is recognized throughout the world for extraordinary and immersive entertainment experiences for consumers. As of September 30, 2010, there were 470 IMAX theatres (348 commercial, 122 institutional) operating in 45 countries.
IMAX®, IMAX® 3D, IMAX DMR®, Experience It In IMAX®, An IMAX 3D Experience® and The IMAX Experience® are trademarks of IMAX Corporation. More information about the Company can be found at www.imax.com. You may also connect with IMAX on Facebook (www.facebook.com/imax), Twitter (www.twitter.com/imax) and YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/imaxmovies">www.youtube.com/imaxmovies).
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This press release contains forward looking statements that are based on management's assumptions and existing information and involve certain risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Important factors that could affect these statements include, but are not limited to, general economic, market or business conditions, including the length and severity of the current economic downturn, the opportunities that may be presented to and pursued by the Company, the performance of IMAX DMR films, conditions in the in-home and out-of home entertainment industries, the signing of theatre system agreements, changes and developments in the commercial exhibition industry, the failure to convert theatre system backlog into revenue, new business initiatives, investments and operations in foreign jurisdictions, foreign currency fluctuations and the Company's prior restatements and the related litigation and investigation by the SEC and the ongoing inquiry by the OSC. These factors and other risks and uncertainties are discussed in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and most recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.