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IMAX Corporation reported third-quarter 2026 revenue of $174.6 million, up 64% from $106.7 million a year earlier, and called the period its best quarterly financial performance on record, according to the company’s 5 November 2026 earnings release. Net income was $117.1 million (67.1% margin), diluted EPS $1.96 and Adjusted EBITDA $120.9 million (69.3% margin). Network box office hit a quarterly record of $712 million, with Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey accounting for more than $550 million in worldwide IMAX grosses and more than 30% of that film’s global box office.
Key facts
- Q3 revenue $174.6m (+64% vs $106.7m); gross margin $126.3m (+88%; 72.3%); net income $117.1m; NI attributable to common shareholders $113.8m
- Diluted EPS $1.96 (+430% vs $0.37); Adjusted EPS $2.21 (+370% vs $0.47); Adjusted EBITDA $120.9m (+133%); cash from operating activities $86m (+28%)
- Record quarterly global network box office $712m (+90% vs prior quarterly record $372m); The Odyssey >$550m WW IMAX BO (Q3 title take $538m); Spider-Man: Brand New Day $58m in the quarter
- Content Solutions revenue $94.0m (+110%), gross margin $71.7m (+125%); Technology Products and Services $77.3m (+28%), gross margin $53.4m (+53%)
- System signings >100 year-to-date (65% new locations); commercial multiplex network 1,820 systems at 30 September; backlog 409; quarter ended 30 September 2026
For exhibition buyers, studio distribution teams and premium-format investors, the print is a clean read-across from AMC’s and Cinemark’s theatrical rebound into the technology and remastering layer that sits above circuit attendance. IMAX’s release and CEO Rich Gelfond’s statement frame The Odyssey’s Filmed for IMAX run as both a box-office event and a sales catalyst for systems, with more than 100 signings year-to-date.
Revenue, profit and segments
Total revenue of $174.6 million produced gross margin of $126.3 million, or 72.3%. Net income rose 418% to $117.1 million; net income attributable to common shareholders was $113.8 million. Diluted EPS was $1.96 against $0.37 a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA rose 133% to $120.9 million. The company also reported cash from operating activities of $86 million in the quarter, up 28%. Nine-month revenue stood at $358.8 million (+26%), with Adjusted EBITDA of $199.4 million (+56%).
Content Solutions revenue rose 110% to $94.0 million and gross margin 125% to $71.7 million (76% margin), tracking the $712 million network box office, which IMAX says was 6.7% of the industry’s third-quarter global box office on less than 1% of screens. Technology Products and Services revenue rose 28% to $77.3 million and gross margin 53% to $53.4 million, helped by rental revenue tied to higher box office and by amendments and renewals; the company installed 32 systems in the quarter against 38 a year earlier.
Net income attributable to common shareholders includes a $36.7 million ($0.63 per diluted share) valuation allowance release on certain Canadian deferred tax assets expected to be used in future years, the release notes. Adjusted figures are non-GAAP; IMAX publishes reconciliations in the same package.
The Odyssey, slate and network
IMAX says The Odyssey is its highest-grossing release, with more than $550 million in worldwide IMAX box office and more than 30% of the film’s global take. Within the third quarter alone the title contributed $538 million of network box office, with Spider-Man: Brand New Day adding $58 million. Gelfond called the quarter evidence of an “IMAX awakening” and tied systems demand to the Odyssey run and to pre-sales for December’s Dune: Part Three.
Year-to-date system signings have passed 100, with 65% at new locations. The commercial multiplex network stood at 1,820 systems at 30 September 2026 (1,887 including destinations and institutional), against 1,759 commercial multiplexes a year earlier, with a backlog of 409 systems. Available liquidity was $641 million, including $208 million of cash. THR reports IMAX expects to exceed its 2026 full-year guidance for a record $1.4 billion in global network box office; that forward line is not restated as a hard figure in the IR highlights table and should be read as management outlook relayed by the trade.
Looking ahead, the release flags Dune: Part Three and the Chinese release of Avengers: Doomsday, with a 2027 slate that includes Wandering Earth 3, Filmed for IMAX titles such as Star Wars: Starfighter and Man of Tomorrow, and an IMAX 70mm presentation of the original Star Wars.
Related FilmBunch coverage includes AMC Theatres’ record $1.71bn Q3, Cinemark’s revenue rise to $1.06bn and Sony Pictures’ sales jump on Spider-Man: Brand New Day. More under Money & Policy.
Our reading
A 64% revenue jump, 69% Adjusted EBITDA margin and a $712m network box office print put IMAX’s premium-format thesis on the same rebound tape as the major US circuits, with The Odyssey as the proof title. The hard facts for buyers are the $174.6m revenue, $120.9m Adjusted EBITDA, $712m network BO and the >100 YTD signings. Whether the “awakening” language sticks depends on Dune: Part Three and the China Doomsday window converting into another record quarter.