While streaming has dominated entertainment in recent years, there’s been a notable shift. Audiences are increasingly seeking out experiences that simply can’t be replicated at home, no matter how impressive their living room setup might be. Sure, theatrical viewing has its drawbacks—the cost, the crowds, the occasional disruptive audience member who ruins a perfectly good horror film screening. But when it comes to truly immersive cinema, nothing beats the big screen.
This resurgence in demand for large-format presentations has prompted Cinemark to expand its IMAX footprint. The theater chain is installing new IMAX screens capable of projecting 70mm film at three locations: Woodridge, Illinois (just outside Chicago), Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Rochester, New York. Beyond these 70mm-capable theaters, Cinemark is also rolling out four additional IMAX with Laser systems—which utilize 4K laser technology—at various U.S. locations over the next several months. The company’s existing dozen IMAX screens throughout the Americas will also receive the laser system upgrade.
The timeline for these installations isn’t random. According to Variety, Cinemark aims to have its new IMAX 70mm screens operational by July 17, 2026—precisely when Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey hits theaters. This upcoming film marks a historic achievement: it’s the first movie ever to be filmed completely in IMAX format. Given that Nolan has long championed 70mm IMAX as his preferred medium, and considering there are currently only 30 theaters worldwide equipped to show films in this format, the expansion makes perfect sense.
The demand speaks for itself. IMAX 70mm showings of The Odyssey have been so sought-after that many screenings sold out an entire year before the film’s release—a testament to how much cinephiles value this premium format.
It’s not just IMAX 70mm drawing people back to theaters, either. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another recently revived the VistaVision format for the first time in six decades, though it’s only available at select venues. Some theaters are also screening Anderson’s film in IMAX 70mm, further demonstrating the appetite for rare theatrical formats.