Experiencing the storm: A night with ‘Twisters’ in 4DX
A whirlwind of emotions
Imagine sitting in a theater, the lights dim, and the screen flickers to life. You’re not just watching a movie; you’re living it. This was my experience at a late-night screening of “Twisters” in New York. The film follows a group of college students chasing a Category 5 tornado in rural Oklahoma. As the twister gains momentum, the crew abandons their car, seeking refuge under an overpass. The scene is intense, with three of them getting sucked into the tornado, meeting a grisly end. Yet, when the scene concluded, the entire theater erupted in laughter.
Why? Because we, too, were caught in a tornado. Albeit a simulated one, experienced from the comfort of cushioned chairs in an air-conditioned auditorium. We were whipped around, blasted by wind, and even doused with water. Just as we caught our breath, our seats began to move again, mimicking truck tires on a dirt road. This is the magic of 4DX.
The 4DX phenomenon
I shelled out $32 to see “Twisters” in 4DX, despite being an AMC A-List subscriber. The reason? The only 4DX theaters in New York City are at Regal cinemas. A friend had texted me, insisting, “You must see ‘Twisters’ in 4DX, as God intended.” They were right. What I would have considered a B-movie transformed into an A+ experience in 4DX.
The immersive experience
For those unfamiliar with 4DX, let me break it down. You sit in a robust chair, similar to a regular cinema recliner. But when the movie starts, you’re immersed in the story through 20 off-screen special effects. These include seat movement, vibration, water, wind, fog, strobe lighting, and even bubbles to simulate blood. These effects are meticulously coded by CJ Group’s “programming artists” and tailored to each film with studio approval. For “Twisters”, with its four major tornado sequences, the movie felt like a roller coaster. In quieter moments, like when Glen Powell strolls outside in a wet T-shirt, the effects were subtler—a bit of mist and a girl two seats over exclaiming, “Oh my God.”
I watched “Twisters” at Regal Union Square, but I’ve heard the Times Square location is even better, boasting the largest 4DX theater in the world with 296 seats. The seat movement was more intense than I expected—more “Space Mountain” than “It’s a Small World.” While thrilling for me, I couldn’t help but think my motion-sickness-prone mom would have turned her popcorn bucket into a barf bag.
The rise of 4DX
Developed by CJ 4DPlex, a subsidiary of CJ Group, 4DX is the second-largest premium large format after Imax and the most popular immersive seating format. The technology debuted in Seoul in 2009 and expanded globally, reaching the U.S. in 2014 with “Transformers: Age of Extinction”. While 4DX has provided steady revenue, it didn’t truly capture the American cultural zeitgeist until “Twisters”.
Box office success
Thanks to a savvy marketing campaign, word-of-mouth buzz, and a viral TikTok trend, “Twisters” had 4DX’s strongest domestic opening weekend of the year, raking in $2.3 million. This record was soon surpassed by “Deadpool & Wolverine”, which dominated 4DX screens nationwide. With these two titles, 4DX scored back-to-back hits.
In its first three days, “Twisters” made $2.1 million in 4DX at Regal alone, surpassing the previous record holder, “The Super Mario Bros. Movie”. Propelled by the hype, “Deadpool & Wolverine” now holds the title with a $2.5 million 4DX domestic opening. While 6% of “Deadpool & Wolverine’s” domestic opening gross at Regal came from 4DX, that number for “Twisters” was a whopping 15%.
The future of immersive cinema
Relative to the rest of the world, Americans are just getting introduced to immersive seating. Before “Twisters”, my only reference was “Shrek 4-D” at Universal Studios Hollywood, which sadly shut down seven years ago. While only 64 4DX screens exist in the U.S., there are 727 outside the country.
This presents an expansion opportunity for Regal, whose parent company, Cineworld, emerged from bankruptcy in August 2023. Regal owns 52 of the 64 U.S. 4DX screens and plans to build more through a partnership with CJ Group. Given “Twisters”‘ success, Regal is bringing the movie—and its 1996 predecessor, “Twister”—back to 4DX for a week starting August 30. Almost a month out from the rerelease, the twin tornado movies had amassed over $700,000 in presales.
A new era for filmmakers
The life cycle of a 4DX movie begins with studios bringing their films to CJ 4DPlex for programming. CJ’s editors in South Korea start working on the movie three to four weeks before release, followed by a quality check with the studio. Occasionally, directors demo the experience and provide feedback. Sometimes it’s as simple as “This is awesome,” while other times, studios send back detailed notes.
CJ brought 40 titles to 4DX in 2023, but “Twisters”—with its wind, rain, and seat-gripping chaos—feels uniquely suited for the technology. Upcoming 4DX titles include “Alien: Romulus”, “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”, “Gladiator 2”, and “Wicked”. The challenge for 4DX is convincing audiences to spend premium dollars to feel like they’re living in these stories.
As the 4DX craze continues, Hollywood is cautious, referencing the digital 3D “gold rush” as a cautionary tale. Unlike 3D, which can be cheaply converted, 4DX requires fully renovated auditoriums, costing significantly more. The scarcity and quality of the product ensure its relevance.
The creative palette
It’s not hard to imagine a future where Hollywood studios develop full-length movies with 4DX in mind, similar to how directors like Christopher Nolan and Denis Villeneuve incorporate Imax. The door is open for these formats to become a creative palette for filmmakers.
For now, the future of 4DX is wide open. As Powell’s character in “Twisters” chants before rushing into the eye of a storm: “If you feel it, chase it!”
For more information and to watch the trailer, visit Twisters.