CJ 4DPlex is positioning this as a revolutionary creative breakthrough — director Destin Daniel Cretton on set working with the team to capture exclusive footage means Spider-Man fans get a genuinely new experience they cannot get anywhere else. CEO Jun Bang frames it as respecting the director's vision while expanding the visual canvas.
But here's what's really going on: premium large format exclusivity deals are getting cutthroat. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is skipping Imax entirely because Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey locked in a four-week exclusive run starting July 17 — and Nolan shot his film entirely on Imax film cameras, giving him serious leverage. ScreenX swooped in to fill the gap with this new format.
First hard fact: Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens July 31, 2026. Second verified detail: CJ 4DPlex CEO Jun Bang confirmed Shot for ScreenX will target '20 to 30 tentpoles a year' across their 140 North American locations. Third concrete number: Nolan has an exclusive four-week Imax run beginning July 17 — that's why Spider-Man isn't there.
This is cinema's format wars heating up, and Spider-Man becoming collateral damage in the Imax-Nolan exclusivity machine is exactly the kind of corporate chess move that gets audiences paying premium prices for content that might've been standard just years ago.
CJ 4DPlex, the Korean cinema technology company behind ScreenX and 4DX, is betting big on a new premium format called "Shot for ScreenX" — launching with this summer's most anticipated blockbuster. The tech expands select scenes beyond the traditional frame onto the sides of auditoriums, creating what they call a panoramic viewing experience across their immersive 270-degree screens. For Spider-Man fans, this could mean seeing Doctor Octopus's mechanical arms extend into your peripheral vision or watching Manhattan buildings blur past as Spidey swings overhead.
Director Destin Daniel Cretton revealed that CJ 4DPlex representatives actually visited the film's set to capture footage specifically for ScreenX — a first for the company. "This is something truly unique that nobody has experienced before – you're going to love it," Cretton said, though he stopped short of revealing which specific scenes will feature the expanded format. The collaboration marks CJ 4DPlex's first time working with filmmakers from production through distribution to curate imagery designed specifically for their screens — a significant escalation from simply adapting existing footage.
The business side reveals how seriously they're taking this expansion. Don Savant, CEO and president of CJ 4DPlex Americas, told Variety the company estimates deploying Shot for ScreenX on roughly 20 to 30 tentpole releases annually. With 140 ScreenX locations currently operating in multiplexes across the United States and Canada, that's a substantial footprint for theatrical exclusivity deals.
Premium large formats have become increasingly vital to theater economics since COVID — specialty offerings like Imax, Dolby, and 4DX can contribute outsized ticket sales for visual-effects heavy blockbusters compared to standard screenings. But here's where things get interesting behind the scenes: Spider-Man: Brand New Day notably will NOT be playing in Imax, the most ubiquitous premium large format. That's because Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey — the first film shot entirely on Imax film cameras — has locked up an exclusive four-week run starting July 17, just two weeks before Spider-Man's July 31 release.
Nolan continues leveraging his prestige status and technical pedigree to command preferential treatment in scheduling negotiations. CJ 4DPlex CEO Jun Bang called Shot for ScreenX an "exciting evolution" that lets the company work directly with Sony Pictures and Cretton while utilizing their proprietary production tools. "Our goal is to create a more encompassing experience that brings audiences closer to the story, the action, and the world of Spider-Man," Bang said in a statement — language that sounds suspiciously similar to what Imax has been saying for years about bringing viewers into the movie's world. Whether audiences will actually pay premium prices for extended peripheral footage on what's essentially wall-projection remains to be seen when Spider-Man swings into theaters this July.
