Imax is not addressing speculation about a potential takeover after shares in the film technology company rose in after-hours market trading Thursday.
Shares in Imax rose $3.62, or nearly 11 percent, to $37.50 after The Wall Street Journal The company was reportedly in the early stages of pitching potential buyers to the company with premium large format (PLF) displays like its own that are transforming the multiplex experience.
Imax executives declined to comment directly on the report that the company was headed to the auction block. But Imax CEO Richard Gelfond told an investor as recently as December 2025 that his company was a more valuable property as consumers paid extra for Imax and other big-screen experiences at local multiplexes.
“So, as this trend accelerates, IMAX is becoming an incredibly valuable player, either as a publicly traded, fully differentiated company or as part of a larger company that has the keys to unlocking greater value and has a strong business around the world,” Gelfond told investors when asked about IMAX’s future.
The newspaper reports added that the Imax sale process is still at an early stage as major Hollywood studios double theatrical releases with longer windows after the end of the pandemic, and may not lead to a deal.
Avatar: Fire and Ashes and Hail Mary project They are the latest entertainers to grace the premium film technology company’s screens as Hollywood looks to upscale, immersive film experiences to lure consumers back to the multiplexes. Although it represents just 1% of North American screens, Imax said it accounted for nearly 20% of total opening weekend revenue for major titles such as Sinners and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning Last year.
A potential Imax acquisition comes as the entertainment industry responds to the rise of event cinema by bolstering PLF’s premium strategy for tentpole releases. Imax studio suppliers, besides capitalizing on the Imax screen experiences demanded in cinemas, are also increasingly shooting their own films using special Imax cameras.
