IMAX (IMAX) CEO Richard Gelfond said he doesn't foresee a change to the theatrical film slate — despite Hollywood's ongoing double strike.
SAG-AFTRA — the union that represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, recording artists, and other media professionals around the world — joined writers on the picket lines earlier this month after the guild failed to negotiate a deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which bargains on behalf of studios including Disney (DIS), Netflix (NFLX), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), and NBCUniversal.
"I think it's very unlikely that the films remaining through the year move," Gelfond told Yahoo Finance in an interview on Thursday. "All of the films we're doing are already in the can. They're done. So you don't need the talent to really get the films finished."
Still, recent reports have said studios like Disney (DIS) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) are weighing changes to their respective slates as a direct result of the double strikes.
Variety reported Warner Bros. is "strongly considering" pushing the highly anticipated "Dune" sequel to next year from its current Nov. 3 debut. Disney is reportedly weighing the same thing for films like "Wish" and "Poor Things," according to Bloomberg.
One concern is the impact the strikes have on films' marketing effort with red carpet premieres and press interviews halted. But Gelfond said the cost of shifting release dates far outweighs the risks.
"When [the studios] do the math on delaying [these films], they'd have the carrying costs on the film for another year and with interest rates where they are now that's not insignificant," he said.
The executive added studios have already launched marketing campaigns for certain films like "Dune," explaining, "The trailers are out, the interest is built. If you pull that back and you had to relaunch it a year from now, who knows what it's in competition with. That would be a very difficult environment."
The environment will likely be even more difficult the longer the strikes continue.
In a recent report, Moody's predicted "a relatively long strike," which would hit movie theater companies such as AMC and Cineworld (CINE.L) first.
"If there is a protracted strike, cinema operators are most at risk with their nearly complete dependency on new product," Moody's said. "Theatrical exhibitors are already strained from damage caused by the COVID pandemic such as lighter release schedules that followed and shortened distribution windowing. They also have mostly weaker balance sheets and credit ratings."
'Paradigm shift' in theatrical landscape
For now, however, business is booming — particularly for IMAX.
"Our box office is tracking towards 2019 pre-pandemic levels," Gelfond told Yahoo Finance, citing a "paradigm shift" in the theatrical landscape.
Films like "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" and "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" helped boost profits in the quarter, with IMAX reporting second quarter revenue of $98 million, up 38% year-over-year. Net income also came in higher at $8.4 million versus the $2.9 million loss seen in the year prior.
"When people go out, they know they want something really different than their couches. They had enough of that, and they're willing to pay for it," the executive said, adding system signings and installs for IMAX premium screens also came in strong for the quarter.
Even better? The results don't include Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" and the Tom Cruise-led "Mission Impossible 7," which both debuted in the company's third quarter.
"Oppenheimer has made this already the biggest July in IMAX's history," Gelfond said. "We're over $50 million for the first four days — just in IMAX — and remember, were less than 1% of the screens showing it."
"Oppenheimer," which brought in $80.5 million domestically this past weekend, nabbed another $93 million from 78 international territories, resulting in a $174.2 million global haul.
The film went head-to-head with Warner Bros.' "Barbie" in a blockbuster weekend that became known as "Barbenheimer." "Barbie" brought in $155 million domestically and another $182 million overseas.
IMAX shares jumped on Thursday following the positive earnings results, up nearly 10%.
Alexandra Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com.
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