‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Finally Arrives on IMAX Screens, and Fans Say the Wait Was Worth It

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ has spent its opening weeks smashing box office records, but there’s been one glaring absence hanging over its historic run: IMAX screens. That gap has finally closed, and moviegoers are already weighing in on just how much bigger the experience feels now that Tom Holland’s latest adventure has swung onto the format director Destin Daniel Cretton originally built it for.

The film’s box office dominance has been staggering from the jump, opening to $355 million domestically and $572 million internationally for a combined $927 million worldwide debut, the second-biggest opening of 2026 so far. That success came almost entirely through standard auditoriums and other premium formats, since Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ had locked down an exclusive multi-week IMAX window beginning July 17, effectively boxing ‘Brand New Day’ out of the format entirely during its crucial opening stretch.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now playing in IMAX, arriving in select digital IMAX locations across North America starting August 6, following the conclusion of The Odyssey’s exclusive run on premium screens. The shift comes directly as a response to the film’s record-breaking performance, with IMAX ultimately deciding to split its North American screens between the two blockbusters rather than let one title continue to dominate the format outright.

IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond addressed the decision directly, framing it as a response to overwhelming demand for Sony’s superhero tentpole. He said, “Spider-Man has been among the most bankable superheroes at the global box office for over two decades, with the franchise delivering $365 million in IMAX receipts to date, and Brand New Day is taking that legacy to new heights with its record-breaking opening weekend. We believe more Spidey fans around the world will want to experience his latest adventure in Imax, and we hope to be a major driver of both new and repeat viewing for the latest hit in this incredible year for moviegoing.”

The new arrangement lets both films coexist across IMAX’s screen inventory rather than forcing either title to sit out the format entirely. ‘The Odyssey’ retains its exclusive hold on all 41 of IMAX’s 70mm film locations worldwide, the format Nolan shot his film with entirely, while ‘Brand New Day’ gains access to the broader network of digital IMAX screens instead. Notably, in China, Japan, and South Korea, where ‘The Odyssey’ hadn’t yet released, ‘Brand New Day’ had already been playing on IMAX screens, generating a combined $23 million across those three markets alone.

The overlap highlights just how tightly premium large-format screens have become contested real estate this summer, with two genuinely massive releases competing for the same finite pool of auditoriums. Beyond IMAX, ‘Brand New Day’ has also found audiences through formats like ScreenX, which offers a 270-degree viewing perspective using footage created specifically for the film, and 4DX, which adds moving seats and environmental effects for a more physically immersive experience.

Despite launching without IMAX access during its opening weekend, ‘Brand New Day’ still managed to outperform ‘The Odyssey’ on nearly every front, with Sony’s film surpassing Nolan’s $911 million global cumulative total after just three weekends. That performance ultimately proved impossible for IMAX to ignore, pushing the company to reconsider an exclusivity arrangement it had only recently been publicly celebrating with Nolan’s team.

With both films now sharing space across IMAX’s premium network and audiences finally able to experience ‘Brand New Day’ the way its director intended, the format battle between these two summer blockbusters looks set to keep shaping how studios negotiate screen access going forward.

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