image credit : Bamboo Works
Key Takeaways:
Imax's Corp.'s (NYSE:IMAX) Greater China revenue fell 49% in the first quarter due to a high year-ago comparison fueled by the blockbuster "Ne Zha 2"
China's overall Lunar New Year box office also plunged 39% this year absent the year-ago hit that went on to become the world's best-grossing animated film
When "Ne Zha 2" dominated the Lunar New Year box office last year, rewriting Chinese box office history, the tale of mythical devil child had a halo effect on Imax China Holding Inc. (1970.HK), whose trademark big-screen theaters were packed during the period. By the first quarter of 2026, however, Imax's results cooled sharply as the market returned to reality.
The massive 2025 boost, and a subsequent crash as the box office returned to more normal conditions this year, were both center stage in the first-quarter results of Imax China's parent, the Canadian firm Imax Corp. (IMAX.US). The results, contained in a filing this week by Imax China, showed Imax Corp.'s revenue fell about 6% in the first quarter to $81.37 million from $86.66 million a year earlier. The company's net income also fell about 25% to $6.07 million from about $8.15 million.
A closer examination of Imax Corp.'s regional breakdown reveals that nearly all of the weakness came from China. The company's revenue from Greater China plunged by nearly half to $20.57 million in the latest quarter from about $40.13 million a year earlier. The region's contribution to total revenue also shrank from 46% to roughly 25% over that time, highlighting how rapidly the company's single most important overseas market contracted.
As a Hong Kong-listed company, Imax China is only required to report its financial results twice a year. But the weak first-quarter showing by its U.S.-listed parent, which files quarterly, hints that Imax China's midyear results won't be pretty when they're released in August.
According to data from China's National Film Administration, China's 2026 Lunar New Year box office was worth 5.75 billion yuan this year ($845 million), down 39% from 9.5 billion yuan in the ...
