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Monday
08Jun2009

IMAX Delays 'Harry Potter' Release, Stock Drops

DateMonday, June 8, 2009 at 5:37PM
Michael Bay really wants you to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in IMAX. And, naturally, so does IMAX. The film opens June 24th, and IMAX is essentially giving Transformers a full month to make its money.

That's great...unless you're Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Or, as it turns out, IMAX stockholders. The company is delaying the release of Potter on its large screens until July 29th to accommodate Transformers. As a result, IMAX shares dipped 4.32% today.

I think Wall Street may have the right idea here. IMAX or not, movies are more likely to make more money when they're first in theaters. I can't say how much Transformers will make between July 15th and July 29th, but I doubt it would make as much as a new Harry Potter chapter could generate in the same period. More importantly, how big a bite can Potter take in August? That's the real question: Would two more weeks of Transformers make more than Potter two weeks later?

IMAX was kind of pinned into this position, however, when Warner Bros. moved Potter from November 2008 to July 2009. It had already inked a five-week run with Transformers and couldn't (or wouldn't) rework the terms of that deal.

It's been a bad month for IMAX, coming off the revelation that several of its screens were imposters, not offering the full-size screen or the sound system the company has become known for. The only good news really is what's coming: Transformers will be re-edited specifically for IMAX, and the Harry Potter series is the most lucrative film property of all time.

AuthorColin Boyd | | in , | Print ArticlePrint Article | | Comment1 Comment |

Reader Comments (1)

Not diggin' this news, especially because if the new movie is anything like the old one, watching Transformers on that huge-ass screen will make my head hurt due to the poor jump cut editing.

I'm a big, big fan of the "Harry Potter" series, and I loved watching the last film in IMAX 3D. It's a shame that we'll have to wait a couple more weeks to see it on the Bigger than Big screen.

Monday, June 8, 2009 | Unregistered CommenterVince

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