\n<\/p>\n
\n\tThe AI-infused retooling of The Wizard of Oz<\/em> that opened last August at Sphere in Las Vegas has now sold almost 3 million tickets, grossing $370 million.<\/p>\n \n\tSphere Entertainment provided the updated tally on the film, which it sees having plenty of playability left, during the company\u2019s first-quarter earnings report. Sphere handily beat Wall Street analysts\u2019 expectations for the January-to-March period, with losses of 4 cents a share far narrower than the Street\u2019s estimate of a loss of 45 cents. Revenue jumped 38% year-over-year to reach $386.4 million, also beating forecasts.<\/p>\n \n\tSphere CEO James Dolan (who affected a giddy tone on the company\u2019s quarterly earnings call Tuesday, perhaps due to his New York Knicks\u2019 recent dominance in the NBA playoffs) discussed plans to build a global \u201cnetwork of Sphere venues.\u201d As of now, the Las Vegas site is the only one up and running, but a full-sized Sphere is progressing through early planning in Abu Dhabi and a scaled-down one at National Harbor near Washington, D.C. is slated to open by 2030. Other sites are being studied for both smaller-scale and full Spheres.<\/p>\n \n\tMusical acts like Metallica, U2, Backstreet Boys, The Eagles and Phish have performed concerts at Sphere, with those shows mixing with Wizard of Oz<\/em>, whose 75-minute running time enables multiple showtimes during days when music is on tap at night.<\/p>\n \n\tDolan said the company has \u201cconfidence\u201d in Wizard of Oz<\/em> being \u201ca strong performer in 2026 and beyond.\u201d The revamped version relied on Google for its AI work. Warner Bros., as the copyright holder was involved in the update of the 1939 classic, as were producers including Jane Rosenthal. Plenty of film purists and critics howled about the overhaul, which by necessity had to use AI to generate characters left out of the original cut of the film.<\/p>\n \n\tGiven the singular nature of Sphere, which boasts the world\u2019s highest-resolution screen and proprietary sound, ticket prices for Wizard of Oz start at around $100 and go a lot higher. The experience goes far beyond the likes of premium large-format auditoriums showing Hollywood blockbusters, with wind machines, flying monkeys and jets of flame augmenting the visuals.<\/p>\n \n\tSphere President and COO Jennifer Koester said on the earnings call that the company is \u201cseeing solid demand for Wizard of Oz<\/em> from all segments of the market, and that includes our cost-conscious consumers. \u2026 the value proposition is really resonating with consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tLater this year, Sphere will premiere extreme-sports documentary From the Edge<\/em>, directed by Free Solo<\/em> Oscar winners E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. The company has said it is talking with a range of IP holders and filmmakers about potential projects to fill out its slate of non-music programming.<\/p>\n \n\tAsked by an analyst for the company\u2019s main takeaway from the Oz<\/em> release, Dolan said it was the fact that the Las Vegas building can accommodate multiple shows in one day. He said a diversified daily offering over time will be \u201cgood for the bottom line\u201d of Sphere, whose stock has risen 47% in 2026 to date.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou\u2019re gonna see things like, at 11 o\u2019clock or 10 o\u2019clock in the morning, The Wizard of Oz<\/em>; at 2 o\u2019clock From the Edge<\/em>; at 4 o\u2019clock, a different piece,\u201d he said. \u201cYou could have multiple viewers in there because the building is built that way. I mean, there\u2019s literally very little changeover from one show to the other. The biggest changeover is when we do concerts. And even that, we were able to accomplish the changeover in under an hour.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n