IMAX strikes its biggest-ever Australian deal as HOYTS doubles its premium footprint

IMAX and HOYTS Cinemas have signed an agreement to roll out ten new IMAX with Laser locations across Australia and New Zealand, a deal the companies describe as the largest in IMAX's Australian history. The expansion nearly doubles the partners' regional presence and underlines a conviction that premium large-format exhibition still has room to grow even as streaming dominates everyday viewing.

Under the agreement, the partnership will expand from four current HOYTS locations to fourteen theatres over the coming years. At least three of the new screens are due to open before the end of 2026, with the remainder arriving across 2027 and 2028 as construction and fit-outs are completed.

A region that punches above its weight

Australia has become a notably strong performer for IMAX. The market delivered a record box office for the format in 2025 and currently ranks among the company's most productive territories worldwide. Several individual Australian sites sit among the top-performing IMAX theatres globally, a reflection of high per-screen revenue and an audience willing to pay premium prices for event films.

That track record is central to the rationale for the expansion. IMAX has grown rapidly in the region in recent years, scaling from a single Australian location to a double-digit network, and the HOYTS deal is the clearest signal yet that both companies see further headroom rather than saturation.

The shape of the rollout

The new theatres will be equipped with IMAX with Laser technology, which delivers high-resolution imagery and an enhanced audio profile through custom projection and sound systems. The phased timeline, front-loaded with three openings in 2026 and the balance spread over the following two years, is designed to match the pipeline of major releases that justify premium screens while managing the capital cost of construction.

• Ten new IMAX with Laser locations across Australia and New Zealand
• Partnership grows from four to fourteen HOYTS sites
• At least three screens opening before the end of 2026
• Remaining theatres scheduled across 2027 and 2028
• Built on a record IMAX box office in Australia in 2025

Why exhibitors are doubling down on premium

The HOYTS expansion reflects a strategy now common across the exhibition sector: leaning into the experiences that streaming cannot replicate. As routine viewing migrates to the living room, cinemas are concentrating investment on the high-end formats that turn a major release into an outing worth leaving home for. Large-format screens command higher ticket prices and tend to capture a disproportionate share of opening-weekend spend on tentpole titles.

For HOYTS, adding the globally recognised IMAX brand to ten more sites strengthens its competitive position in a market where premium differentiation increasingly determines which chain captures the biggest releases. For IMAX, deepening its relationship with a major regional operator secures long-term access to prime locations and a reliable partner for future growth.

Content management in the mix

The deal also lands at a time when IMAX is actively curating what plays on its limited premium inventory, prioritising the titles it expects to resonate most strongly with audiences. That discipline matters: with screen count constrained relative to the number of films vying for the format, the company's scheduling decisions directly shape the value of each new location. Expanding the network gives IMAX more flexibility to slot in high-demand releases without crowding out other titles.

Outlook

The success of the rollout will hinge on the strength of the theatrical slate over the next two to three years and on whether Australian and New Zealand audiences continue to turn out for premium showings at current rates. The record numbers of 2025 suggest the demand is there, but exhibition remains sensitive to the rhythm of major releases, and a thin year can quickly soften per-screen returns.

For now, the agreement stands as one of the most significant exhibition commitments in the region and a vote of confidence in the enduring appeal of the big-screen experience. As streaming reshapes the wider business, IMAX and HOYTS are wagering that, for the films that matter most, audiences will still pay to see them as large and loud as possible.

The NE Times View

The pattern is unmistakable: as streaming flattens everyday viewing, exhibitors are betting that audiences will still pay a premium for the irreproducible big-screen event. Doubling the antipodean footprint is a vote of confidence in that thesis. For Indian cinema, increasingly exported to diaspora-heavy markets like Australia, more IMAX capacity abroad means bigger overseas windows. The open question is how many films genuinely warrant the format.

This article is original commentary and analysis by The NE Times. Background facts were referenced from Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.