Spider-Man: Brand New Day to skip IMAX release in India as Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey secures exclusive screens
BY CHRISTA LINCY
July is shaping up to be one of the biggest months for Hollywood releases in India, with two massive titles arriving just weeks apart. Christopher Nolan's period epic, The Odyssey, is scheduled to hit screens on July 17, followed by the highly anticipated Spider-Man: Brand New Day on July 30. While both films are still a few weeks away, the buzz is already reflected in the advance bookings. Tickets for The Odyssey went live on June 8, while Spider-Man bookings opened yesterday, June 17. The response has been overwhelming, suggesting a massive opening for both films at the Indian box office.
However, there is a specific detail that has caught the attention of Marvel fans. For the first time in a long while, a solo Spider-Man film will skip an IMAX release in India. While these films are usually a staple for the giant screen format, Sony Pictures India recently confirmed that Spider-Man: Brand New Day will not be available in IMAX. Instead, the studio is steering audiences toward other premium large-format screens like PXL, 4DX, ScreenX, and Dolby Cinema. This decision is not about the film's quality, but rather a strategic screen-locking move by Christopher Nolan.
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The reason behind this IMAX absence is the exclusive window secured for The Odyssey. Nolan's latest project was shot entirely using IMAX 70mm film cameras, making it a priority for the format globally. Because of the technical requirements and Nolan's long-standing partnership with the brand, all IMAX screens in India and around the world will exclusively play The Odyssey for a minimum of three weeks. Since Spider-Man arrives just thirteen days after Nolan's film, it falls directly into this lockout period, leaving no room for the web-slinger on IMAX screens.
This trend of exclusive IMAX windows is becoming more common as filmmakers push for specific cinematic experiences. We saw a similar situation during the release of Oppenheimer in 2023, where its sustained performance kept other big titles away from IMAX for weeks. It looks like the industry is heading toward more of these clashes, as reports suggest that the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday might also face similar screen issues when it goes up against Dune: Part Three later in the year. To counter this, studios like Disney are even looking into introducing their own premium certifications to ensure their blockbusters still feel like a grand event.
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Despite the lack of IMAX shows, the hype for Spider-Man: Brand New Day remains incredibly high. Fans are quickly filling up shows in other immersive formats like 4DX and ScreenX, which offer their own unique viewing experiences. The film also holds a unique connection to its competitor, as Tom Holland stars in both of these July blockbusters. It is a rare situation where an actor will be competing against himself at the box office with two of the years most anticipated movies.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is set to release in multiple languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. Indian audiences will actually get to see the film on July 30, a day before its global release on July 31. With a wide variety of formats like 3D, Dolby Cinema, and MX4D still available, the movie is expected to dominate the charts, even if the biggest screens in the country are occupied by Nolan's epic journey.
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