Black Widow to Open With Expanded Aspect Ratio Exclusively in IMAX

IMAX has announced that Marvel Studios’ Black Widow, set to be released by The Walt Disney Company on July 9, will debut with 22 minutes of select scenes in expanded aspect ratio exclusively in IMAX. Black Widow is the first new movie in Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the first new Marvel Studios theatrical release since 2019.

In the film, Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger. Joining Johansson in the new feature film are Florence Pugh as Yelena, David Harbour as Alexei/The Red Guardian, and Rachel Weisz as Melina.

The movie is directed by Cate Shortland (Lore) from a script written by Jac Schaeffer (WandaVision) and produced by Kevin Feige. With several scenes specially formatted exclusively for IMAX theatres, film fans can experience the movie on the massive IMAX screen at 1.90:1 aspect ratio – showing up to 26% more of the onscreen image.

Aspect ratio is the technical term for the proportional relationship between an image’s width and height. Most films are presented in an aspect ratio called CinemaScope (2.40:1) which is why they appear very wide but not very high. IMAX provides filmmakers with the ability to use an expanded aspect ratio – allowing them to use more of the original image. Watching a film with an expanded aspect ratio provides audiences with a full immersive view that fills the peripheral vision more than any other cinematic experience.

Black Widow will be playing in IMAX theatres on July 9. The film will also stream on Disney+ with Premier Access.