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Disney Plus is upgrading Marvel movies to IMAX aspect ratio

Disney Plus is upgrading Marvel movies to IMAX aspect ratio

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You’ll see smaller black bars in certain scenes from 13 movies

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Disney and IMAX have announced a collaboration that will see several Marvel movies presented in IMAX’s Expanded Aspect Ratio format on Disney Plus. 13 MCU movies in total will be upgraded to IMAX Enhanced on November 12th, including Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which is making its debut on the service that day.

While IMAX traditionally uses a squarer 1.43:1 format, Expanded Aspect Ratio is 1.90:1, which is relatively close to the 16:9 ratio of TVs. Marvel movies are generally presented in wider, letterboxed aspect ratios, but many of them feature some 1.90:1 sequences captured with IMAX-certified cameras for a taller picture in IMAX theaters. Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, meanwhile, were shot entirely in the format.

Black Widow, for example, has 22 minutes of IMAX Expanded Aspect Ratio footage, so those scenes will fill up more of your TV screen when you watch them on Disney Plus. In other words, the black bars will be smaller. The IMAX Enhanced designation will eventually involve more features, like DTS surround sound. 

Here’s the full list of MCU movies that will be certified as IMAX Enhanced on November 12th:

  • Ant-Man and the Wasp
  • Avengers: Endgame
  • Avengers: Infinity War
  • Black Panther
  • Black Widow
  • Captain America: Civil War
  • Captain Marvel
  • Doctor Strange
  • Iron Man
  • Guardians of the Galaxy
  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  • Thor: Ragnarok