Spider-Man and Nolan's epic collaboration ignite box office! North American cinema stocks surge, AMC (AMC.US) achieves strongest weekend revenue in a century

According to Zhihui Finance APP, with the strong release of two blockbusters, "Spider-Man: A New Day" and "Odyssey", high-quality summer movies are effectively driving audiences back to the big screen, sending cinema operator stock prices soaring on Monday.

At the opening in New York on Monday, AMC Theatres (AMC.US) shares surged as much as 7.5% before giving up most of the gains; Marcus (MCS.US) rose up to 11.4%, Cineplex increased by 4.1%, IMAX (IMAX.US) climbed 6.8%, and Cinemark Theatres (CNK.US) also recorded a 6.5% rise.

AMC stated that the past weekend marked the highest revenue in its century-long history. From last Wednesday to Sunday, AMC and Odeon cinemas attracted about 10.2 million moviegoers, who came to see the latest entry of the beloved superhero once again played by Tom Holland. AMC also announced that both admissions and food & beverage revenue at its Dolby Cinemas hit record highs. This attendance figure also surpassed the three-year-old weekend record of 7.8 million set when "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" went head-to-head.

The new "Spider-Man", distributed by Sony (SONY.US) Pictures Entertainment and co-produced with Disney’s (DIS.US) Marvel Studios, grossed $360 million at the North American box office on its debut weekend, with a global total reaching $932 million. It not only became the best movie opening of the year but also set a new Hollywood record for first-weekend box office revenue.

"This is undoubtedly a historically significant weekend for AMC," said CEO Adam Aron in a statement. "It proves, powerfully and unequivocally, that when studios deliver what audiences crave — and back it with strong marketing — viewers will embrace the theatrical experience with immense enthusiasm."

The "Spider-Man" franchise has proven to be Sony's steadfast formula for success. Since the early 2000s, this crime-fighter has become a core character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Hollywood’s most successful IP series), with the related films reaching billions of dollars in cumulative box office revenue.

However, it wasn’t just Spider-Man shining this summer. Directed by Christopher Nolan, "Odyssey" premiered on July 17 and earned $124.5 million domestically in its first weekend, significantly boosting demand in premium large-screen formats such as IMAX.

AMC reported that demand for "Odyssey" on its 200-plus IMAX screens worldwide remains high, with New York's AMC Lincoln Square 13 showing the 70mm IMAX version all day, Friday through Sunday, for the third consecutive weekend.

"There is no doubt that audiences of all ages are eager to experience quality movies on the big screen," stated Marcus Theatres President Jeff Tomachek in a statement.

Cinemark Theatres also announced a historic high in domestic weekend box office, noting that the sustained popularity of "Spider-Man: A New Day" and "Odyssey" is jointly driving records in both admissions and concession sales.

According to box office tracker Rentrak, movie ticket revenues so far this year have increased by 15.2% year-on-year, likely to set a new post-pandemic annual record. Market research firm EntTelligence estimates that about 24.1 million people watched "Spider-Man: A New Day", making it the highest-attended film since 2020. Total admissions thus far this year have also risen by 11%. EntTelligence data further shows that higher ticket prices and growth in IMAX, Dolby and other premium format screenings are jointly driving even greater increases in box office revenues.

While phenomenon-level blockbusters like "Spider-Man: A New Day" are rare, several potential hits are waiting in the wings this year, including "Dune 3" and a brand new "Avengers" film, both set for simultaneous release on December 18.