Imax has signed a deal with EVO Entertainment for eight new giant screen theaters to cap off a flurry of new agreements unveiled this week at CinemaCon.
The agreement with the Austin-based exhibitor will see Imax bring seven new theaters to the Texas market, and another in Florida, with all having laser projection systems. The new locations, to include giant theater screens in Houston and Austin, are expected to begin opening in the third quarter of 2023.
On Tuesday, Imax said it signed a deal for six new systems in Mexico with local exhibitor Cinemex, and three systems in Florida with the company’s U.S. subsidiary, CMX Cinemas. And on Monday, Imax announced deals with Thai exhibitor Cineplexx and Vietnam’s Galaxy Cinemas, which came on top of earlier multi-theater deals announced with cinema chain partners in Japan, Indonesia and France.
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“EVO is bringing fresh energy to the exhibition landscape in Texas and beyond and we are very excited to be in business with such a forward-thinking, innovative partner committed to offering audiences premium entertainment experiences,” Richard Gelfond, CEO of Imax, said in a statement.
EVO Entertainment Group launched in 2014 and the exhibitor’s upcoming Imax locations include EVO Entertainment Kyle, ShowBiz Cinemas Homestead, EVO Entertainment Hutto set for a 2024 opening, EVO Cinemas Creekside, EVO Cinemas Belterra, ShowBiz Cinemas Baytown, ShowBiz Cinemas Liberty Lakes and ShowBiz Cinemas Waxahachie.
The latest deals unwrapped at CinemaCon bring to 62 the company’s signings so far this year for new or upgraded Imax systems worldwide, more than all theater signings in 2022.
Imax saw a similar spike in theater sales and installations in the two years after the original Avatar movie from director James Cameron was released in 2009, and expects similar out-sized growth for its global theater network in under-penetrated markets, including in Europe, in 2023 and beyond after the sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, played to big box office on its global network.
