At Meta Connect 2026, Industrial Light & Magic put storytelling—not just RESOLUTION—at the center of Meta’s new glasses push. On September 23, the studio announced Disney Immersive Cinema by ILM and National Geographic: Beyond, two experiences NOW IN DEVELOPMENT for Meta VR Glasses plus Meta Quest 3 and Quest 3S.
The timing MATTERS. Meta just unveiled roughly 100-gram VR Glasses for Spring 2027 at $1,299.99, pitching a personal cinema and workspace in a form factor lighter than a Quest strap. ILM’s slate is the CONTENT counterweight: familiar IP, reframed for spatial viewing, without rewriting the films themselves.
Disney Immersive Cinema: The SCREEN Stays Center
Disney Immersive Cinema by ILM is designed as a HUB for VR-enhanced feature films. According to ILM, the movie REMAINS unchanged and remains the CENTERPIECE. In KEY scenes, elements can expand into the viewer’s surroundings through what the studio calls enhanced cinema technology—aimed at PRESENCE, not a remake.
First titles named: Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: A New Hope and Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War—both films where ILM originally contributed visual effects. Executive producer Shereif Fattouh said the studio wants a “new canvas for storytelling” that keeps moments AUTHENTIC to the filmmakers’ vision while bringing fans CLOSER to characters and places.
National Geographic: Beyond Goes STEREOSCOPIC
National Geographic: Beyond takes a DIFFERENT path. Created with National Geographic, it uses REAL stereoscopic 180-degree footage filmed on location in Africa SPECIFICALLY for Meta’s devices. ILM frames it as proximity to wildlife and landscapes—not CGI safari theater—plus room for ADDITIONAL immersive storytelling approaches still to be detailed.
Hardware Context: Glasses PLUS Quest
Both projects target Meta VR Glasses and current Quest 3 / 3S headsets. ILM says ADDITIONAL DETAILS will come later; no public ship dates were attached to either experience in the studio’s Connect post. Separately, Meta’s OWN hardware brief notes related cinema pushes—including Disney+ 3D streaming for select titles starting in November in some countries, and VR-enhanced Infinity War / A New Hope in the Immersive Cinema app when the glasses launch in spring—so treat those timelines as Meta’s framing, not ILM’s calendar.
For Metaverse Watcher readers, the SIGNAL is clear: Connect was not only about lighter OPTICS and a compute puck. Hollywood-grade partners are lining up SPATIAL versions of proven catalogs, while Quest remains the near-term playback path until glasses ship.