The multi-sensory 4DX format from CJ 4DPlex drew $22 million at the global box office in October, which, according to the company is an increase of 16 percent year-over-year, making it the highest ever recorded for the month of October in the history of the company.
Breakout performances boosted the 4DX box office leading to increased performances around the globe led by China at 164 percent, followed by Austria 110 percent, India 66 percent, U.S. 27 percent and Japan 21 percent.
The results were driven not only by Hollywood titles including Maleficent: Mistress of Evil and Gemini Man but also by several local titles in China, India and Japan. China's box office feat can be attributed to strong performances of two Chinese films released in October in 4DX, The Captai" and The Climbers. These films grossed more than $4.5 million at the 4DX box office with The Captain ranking as the highest performing 4DX film of October.
War, an action film produced by Yash Raj Films, had a great run at the Indian box office, contributing to the noteworthy growth of up to 66 percent compared to last year in the same month at the 4DX box office in India. "The audiences enjoyed watching the film in 4DX and the feedback has been encouraging," said Rohan Malhotra, vice president, distribution, Yash Raj Films. War is the first 4DX Bollywood movie of 2019, releasing across Europe and the Middle East in the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Oman, Kuwait and the UAE.
In addition, Japanese animation films, Weathering With You, Girls und Panzer das Finale: Part 1-2, Konosuba-God's Blessing on this Wonderful World Legend of Crimson and Promare, hit 4DX screens in Japan, topping $2.8 million at the box office. Among them, Weathering With You, which was released in 59 4DX auditoriums in Japan, and five 4DX auditoriums in Taiwan, marked the highest in gross.
Altogether, the success of local films' contributed to the 4DX global box office share in October of up to 43 percent.
In addition to its box office growth, 4DX expanded its footprint in October, altogether opening 10 new auditoriums across the U.S., Canada, U.K., France, Denmark, Switzerland, Japan and India, including one 4DX with ScreenX auditorium in Japan. To date, 4DX is available in 694 auditoriums in 65 countries.
The October box office announcement follows the record-breaking third quarter performance of 4DX, which brought more than $90 million in the global box office, ranking as the best quarterly performance since its launch in 2009.