IMAX Plans for “Spider-Man 4″

When will this be the everyday moviegoing experience?

Columbia Pictures has announced that “Spider-Man 4″ will be released on IMAX screens on May 5, 2011, the same day as its general release. The film brings back the usual suspects–director Sam Raimi and stars Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst. Gary Ross is the latest writer to try to take a dear-god-let-it-be-better-than-Spider-Man 3 stab at the script.

Here’s the official press release-y type quote: 

“The last two ‘Spider-Man’ releases have been available in IMAX theaters, and we’re very much looking forward to our return to a wider IMAX theatre network with this exciting new chapter in the continuing adventures of Spider-Man,” said Rory Bruer, President, Worldwide Distribution for Sony Pictures Releasing. “The addition of so many new IMAX locations will give even more fans of Spider-Man an opportunity to experience the action and adventure in a unique way.”

(Aaaaahhh!! He’s swinging right at me!!)

This may seem like a ho hum announcement, but it is very significant. In the last year or so, some movies that have had good or very good box office results have been bumped up into the excellent or super ranks due to IMAX ticket prices. Some studios have even been holding back or reconfiguring their schedules to make sure that they can get a movie into an IMAX theater. The expected effect would be that more IMAX theaters will begin to appear–but once they become more common, will they still be able to charge extra high prices? Or will those prices become the norm? Is there a future where all movie theaters are IMAX? Hmmm… Pass the gigantic IMAX sized popcorn bucket and let me think about that.