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Fifth Installment of Popular Harry Potter Franchise Marks First IMAX Title for 2007 Film Slate

LOS ANGELES, CA, June 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — IMAX Corporation and Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – the third Harry Potter film to be converted into IMAX’s format – will be simultaneously released to both IMAX(R) and conventional theatres on July 13, 2007. The film is based on the best-selling J.K. Rowling book and is the fifth installment of the widely successful Harry Potter film series. The last installment of the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire which opened on November 18, 2005, shattered numerous IMAX 2D box office records and grossed more than $20 million in IMAX theatres worldwide.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is Warner Bros. Pictures’ thirteenth title scheduled to be digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience(R) with IMAX DMR(R) (Digital Re-mastering) technology. Warner Bros. Pictures will be the exclusive distributor of the film to IMAX theatres worldwide.

“The Harry Potter series has been a huge success in IMAX theatres, and we are delighted to combine this next exciting installment with The IMAX Experience to offer Harry Potter fans another magical adventure for 2007,” said Dan Fellman, President of Domestic Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures. “The IMAX theatre network is a proven source of incremental revenue that we believe will grow exponentially as more IMAX theatres continue to open around the world.”

“We’re delighted to be working with Warner Bros. Pictures on our 2007 film slate this early in the year,” said IMAX Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler. “The last two Harry Potter films we released to IMAX theatres grossed a combined $34 million, demonstrating the strong worldwide appeal of Harry Potter and The IMAX Experience. This new title gives us a powerful kick-start to next year’s film slate.”

“We are proud of our partnership with Warner Bros. and producer David Heyman, and we’re excited that once again Warner Bros. Pictures will be delivering a film that lends itself perfectly to The IMAX Experience,” added Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment. “As we explore the possibility of converting some of the picture into IMAX(R) 3D, we expect to have an even broader audience base for the release of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in 2007.”