Last year, as part of an IMAX shareholder presentation, Avengers: Doomsday was announced alongside 20 other blockbuster movies for an IMAX release in 2026. However, fans were shocked to learn that this agreement would fall through, leaving Doomsday to miss out on IMAX upon its release in favor of Dune: Part Three in December. Undeterred, Disney opted to invest in a controversial strategy to compete with IMAX for the upcoming release of Doomsday: Infinity Vision.
Announced at CinemaCon 2026, Infinity Vision is a certification program designed to identify Premium Large Format (PLF) theaters that would offer the optimal viewing experience for Avengers: Doomsday. However, it would be the re-release of Avengers: Endgame that would be the true test of this new certification program across multiple different theater formats.
Andrew Cripps, head of theatrical distribution for Disney, recently addressed that while IMAX was a valued PLF partner, it wasn't the only way for audiences to enjoy blockbusters, and that there were "320 premium format brands" that could take their place:
"There are approximately 320 premium format brands around the world, including the brands promoted in-house by theater chains."
To give audiences comparable experiences to an IMAX screening of Avengers: Doomsday, Disney invested in Infinity Vision and other PLF partners as "a way for us to help theaters guide [audiences] to the best option in their area."
Almost like a practice run, and to encourage audiences to re-watch Endgame in preparation for Doomsday, Disney sent guidelines to theaters over the summer to help them qualify for the Infinity Vision certification program for both releases. Screens had to be at least 45 feet wide, have a 7.1 surround sound system, and have a non-3D projector brightness of at least 14 foot-lamberts.
With these standards, some of Disney's top non-IMAX PLF partners were able to pass with ease, including the theater-spanning ScreenX, the roller-coaster experience of 4DX, the spatial audio of Dolby Cinema, the haptic feedback of D-Box, and many more.
Cripps, while speaking with The Wrap, also expressed that Disney doesn't want theaters to "abandon their brands" with this certification program, but to work "in conjunction" with it to help market their brands:
"We're not asking [theaters] to abandon their brands. They spent a lot of time developing these brands. This is in conjunction with those brands, and we’re going to help them market it."
As of this moment, it appears this strategy is a winning one for both Disney and its non-IMAX PLF partners, with 70% of advance ticket sales for Avengers: Doomsday coming from Infinity Vision-approved PLF theaters. An unprecedented success after Doomsday was denied any IMAX screens, but will this strategy last beyond the end of the Multiverse Saga?
Will Disney Continue Using Infinity Vision After Doomsday?
Initially, it was only assumed that this certification system would be used for the re-release of Avengers: Endgame and the December release of Avengers: Doomsday, but with the massive push in putting a spotlight on other brands like ScreenX, 4DX, and more, there's potential for this certification system lasting beyond Doomsday. There's no doubt that Disney will continue working with IMAX, but there's an opportunity here.
In a bit of surprising news, it was recently discovered that Godzilla Minus Zero was listed for both IMAX and Infinity Vision-approved screens in South Africa and other regions (via Ster-Kinekor). Showing that Disney is willing to allow the use of this program and its branding by other distributors like Toho.
Again, Infinity Vision was never meant to be a special new format for theaters, merely an easy way for audiences to identify screens that would deliver the best possible viewing experience outside IMAX. There's a certain appeal to distributors in having an all-encompassing label for non-IMAX PLFs, and Disney might have finally given them one.
