Here’s How Much IMAX Lost On Marvel’s Inhumans

Inhumans just can’t catch a break.

Originally hatched as a big-budget addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, during which time the likes of Vin Diesel and other Hollywood stars were tipped to climb on board, the beleaguered project was later repackaged as an eight-part TV series, one which still retained its cinematic DNA through those much-hyped IMAX scenes.

Of course, the journey to the small screen wasn’t without problems of its own, after the first wave of Inhumans reviews deemed Marvel and ABC’s latest venture to be a “visual bust.” Those knee-jerk reactions began to surface soon after the show’s IMAX premiere, which took place in September, when Marvel rolled out the opening two episodes across participating theaters.

While it may have seemed like a profitable venture back when it was first conceived, all the negative buzz ultimately damned the project and now, we’re learning that IMAX took quite a hit on its investment, losing $11.1 million on the show. Speaking about the failure, Chief Executive Richard Gelfond assured everyone that in the future, they’ll be taking a more “conservative approach” to things:

“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.”

On why exactly Black Bolt and the Royal Family failed to bring in an audience, Gelfond said:

“We believe one of the biggest contributors to the less-than-forecasted theatrical performance was a misalignment of customer expectations. Customers expected a production akin to a mega-budget blockbuster movie, rather than pilots for a television show. 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.”

Despite all this, Inhumans continues to march on with its first season on ABC and will return next Friday, November 3rd, with its seventh episode, before wrapping up the week after. Beyond that, though? Well, we still don’t know what Marvel plans to do, but apparently, a second season hasn’t been ruled out just yet. As always, watch this space for more.