IMAX CEO Says ‘Marvel Inhumans’ Experiment Let Down Moviegoers

With fans heading to IMAX screens and paying a premium for the experience, word quickly spread that Inhumans wasn’t a huge blockbuster as it only brought in $3.5 million in at the box office. And with Marvel’s Inhumans currently showing on ABC in the US and starting on Sky One weekend in the UK, without bringing in big viewing figures, IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond has spoken out to Deadline, about the failed TV shows performance at IMAX screens in September, blaming its disappointing reception, at least in theaters, on a “misalignment of customer expectations.”

“Customers expected a production akin to a mega-budget blockbuster movie, rather than pilots for a television show,” Gelfond said. “Moreover, the fact that this was Marvel IP set the bar at a level you wouldn’t see from other pieces of content or IP because of the reputation and the high production value of Marvel movies.”

And because of the failure of Inhumans on the IMAX screens, it doesn’t look like there will be more as Gelfond added “Going forward, we intend to take a more conservative approach consistent with the Game of Thrones approach to capital investments and content. We will be more conservative when considering whether to invest our own capital; and if so, to what extent.”

While Marvel has been on a roll at the box office, Inhumans has been a bumpy ride, the movie was cancelled and turned into a show, poor feedback, bad ratings, has already resulted in the series not returning for another series.

What did you think of Inhumans?