In a summer of blockbusters, where audiences choose to watch is reshaping the box office. Premium large-format screens — IMAX and other immersive formats — are powering a growing share of summer 2026’s ticket sales, as moviegoers pay extra for a bigger, louder, more enveloping experience. In an age of home streaming, the premium screen has become the multiplex’s most powerful weapon.
The premium surge
Big screens drive big money. Premium large-format auditoriums command higher ticket prices and routinely sell out for major releases, contributing an outsized share of revenue relative to their seat count. For blockbusters built on spectacle, these formats have become the preferred — and most profitable — way to watch.
Why audiences pay up
The experience is the draw. Towering screens, immersive sound and superior projection deliver something home setups cannot match, giving audiences a compelling reason to leave the couch. For event films, the premium format turns a movie into an occasion worth paying a premium for.
The streaming counterweight
It is the theaters’ answer to streaming. As home viewing improves, cinemas have leaned into experiences that can’t be replicated at home, and premium formats are central to that strategy. By emphasizing scale and immersion, theaters give audiences a reason to show up — and to pay more when they do.
Filmmakers embrace it
Directors are designing for the format. Major filmmakers increasingly shoot with premium large-format cameras and craft their films for the biggest screens, treating the format as integral to their vision. That creative buy-in reinforces the premium experience and gives audiences another reason to seek it out.
Why it matters
It is reshaping cinema economics. Premium screens deliver disproportionate revenue and help justify the theatrical experience in a streaming world, influencing how films are made, marketed and released. Their rise is a bright spot for exhibitors and a sign of where the theatrical business is heading.
The bottom line
Premium large-format screens are powering summer 2026’s box office, as audiences pay up for bigger, more immersive experiences that streaming can’t match. Embraced by filmmakers and central to theaters’ strategy, the premium screen has become a key driver of revenue and a compelling reason to go out to the movies. In the battle for audiences, bigger is proving better.
