LOS ANGELES, April 20, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IMAX Corporation (NYSE:IMAX) (TSX:IMX), Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment, LLC formally announced today that they have finalized an agreement to release the epic superhero adventure Thor in digital IMAX® theatres worldwide day-and-date on May 6, 2011. The release marks the continuation of the partnership between IMAX, Paramount and Marvel. The film, based on the well-known Marvel comic book, is directed by Kenneth Branagh, produced by Kevin Feige, and stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins. The screenplay is by Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz and Don Payne from a story by J. Michael Straczynski and Mark Protosevich.
Tim Connors, Chief Operating Officer, Marvel Studios, stated, "We're excited to continue our relationship with IMAX following the success we shared on Iron Man 2, and we look forward to fans experiencing the thrill of Thor in the immersive IMAX® 3D format."
"Bringing iconic characters to life is something that Marvel Entertainment and Paramount do very well, and we're confident that Thor will also come to life on the IMAX screen," said IMAX CEO Richard L. Gelfond. "This highly-anticipated summer title is tailor-made for the IMAX audience."
"We're pleased to expand our relationship with Marvel and Paramount with Thor, which is a great addition to our summer tentpole slate," said Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment. "We believe Thor will resonate with the IMAX audience by transporting them directly into the 3D world that Kenneth Branagh and the Marvel team have created for this epic film."
About Thor
Marvel Studios expands its film universe with a new type of superhero: Thor. This epic adventure spans the Marvel Universe; from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is The Mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here, Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth. Kenneth Branagh directs this fantasy epic which stars Australian actor Chris Hemsworth as the god of thunder, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, a young woman who befriends Thor on Earth, Tom Hiddleston as Thor's evil brother Loki, and Anthony Hopkins as Odin, Thor's father and king of Asgard. Expect to see agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., previously seen in Iron Man to make an appearance, further foreshadowing the coming of Marvel Studios' The Avengers! Thor's screenplay is by Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz and Don Payne from a story by J. Michael Straczynski and Mark Protosevich.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing. For more information visit www.marvel.com. Super Hero(es) is a co-owned registered trademark.
About Paramount Pictures Corporation
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA-B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company's labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group and Paramount Television & Digital Distribution.
About IMAX Corporation
IMAX Corporation is one of the world's leading entertainment and technology companies, specializing in the creation and delivery of premium, awe-inspiring entertainment experiences. With a growing suite of cutting-edge motion picture and sound technologies, and a globally recognized entertainment brand, IMAX is singularly situated at the convergence of the entertainment industry, innovation and the digital media world. The industry's top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX theatres to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, and as such, the IMAX network is among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. The Company's new digital projection and sound systems - combined with a growing blockbuster film slate - are fueling the rapid expansion of the IMAX network in established markets such as North America, Western Europe, and Japan, as well as emerging markets such as China and Russia. IMAX theaters deliver the world's best cinematic presentations using proprietary IMAX, IMAX 3D, and IMAX DMR® (Digital Re-Mastering) technologies. IMAX DMR enables virtually any motion picture to be transformed into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience.
IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles, with offices in London, Tokyo and Shanghai. As of December 31, 2010, there were 518 IMAX theatres (396 commercial, 122 institutional) operating in 46 countries.
IMAX®, IMAX® 3D, IMAX DMR®, Experience It In IMAX®, An IMAX 3D Experience® and The IMAX Experience® are trademarks of IMAX Corporation. More information about the Company can be found at www.imax.com. You may also connect with IMAX on Facebook ( www.facebook.com/imax ), Twitter ( www.twitter.com/imax ) and YouTube ( www.youtube.com/imaxmovies ).
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This press release contains forward looking statements that are based on management's assumptions and existing information and involve certain risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Important factors that could affect these statements include, but are not limited to, general economic, market or business conditions, including the length and severity of the current economic downturn, the opportunities that may be presented to and pursued by the Company, the performance of IMAX DMR films, conditions in the in-home and out-of home entertainment industries, the signing of theatre system agreements, changes and developments in the commercial exhibition industry, the failure to convert theatre system backlog into revenue, new business initiatives, investments and operations in foreign jurisdictions, foreign currency fluctuations and the Company's prior restatements and the related litigation and investigation by the SEC and the ongoing inquiry by the OSC. These factors and other risks and uncertainties are discussed in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and most recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.
CONTACT: Entertainment Media: IMAX Corporation - Santa Monica Rebecca Klein 310-255-5656 rklein@imax.com Principal Communications Group, Los Angeles Melissa Zukerman/Paul Pflug 323-658-1555 melissa@pcommgroup.com paul@pcommgroup.com Investors: IMAX Corporation - New York Heather Anthony 212-821-0121 hanthony@imax.com Business Media: IMAX Corporation - New York Ann Sommerlath 212-821-0155 asommerlath@imax.com IMAX Corporation - Toronto Jackson Myers 905-403-6414 jmyers@imax.com Sloane & Company - New York Whit Clay 212-446-1864 wclay@sloanepr.com
