🏺 'The Odyssey' Secures Epic Box Office Debut
Universal’s adventure-action feature The Odyssey made a triumphant big-screen debut, racking up a stunning $264.1 million at the global box office over its opening weekend. Of that total, international markets contributed $139.6 million, while the film generated $124.5 million domestically in the United States.
For a three-hour, R-rated release that is not part of a pre-established modern franchise, industry experts are calling this result phenomenal.
The box office triumph of this adaptation of Homer’s 3,000-year-old epic poem reaffirms Christopher Nolan’s unique status as a marquee director capable of drawing millions of viewers to complex, auteur-driven projects. For Nolan, the launch marks the biggest international debut of his career, overtaking the opening weekends of The Dark Knight Rises ($249 million in 2012) and The Dark Knight ($198 million in 2009). In the overall year-to-date standings, The Odyssey claimed the number three spot for the fastest opening, trailing only the animated hits The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ($372.5 million) and Toy Story 5 ($312 million).
Universal fully financed the feature, allocating a $250 million production budget. Matt Damon stars as the King of Ithaca battling his way home after the Trojan War, supported by a star-studded ensemble cast that includes Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron. The film has rolled out in 73 countries, delivering the best opening weekends of Nolan’s career in 48 territories, including the United Kingdom ($17.4 million), France ($13.7 million), and Italy ($11.5 million). Notably, its theatrical rollouts in China, South Korea, and Japan are still to come.
Premium formats served as the primary locomotive for the film’s box office gross: The Odyssey made history as the first-ever feature film shot entirely with IMAX cameras. IMAX auditoriums generated 23% of the project’s total global box office ($51.8 million), outpacing even Avengers: Endgame in comparable markets. The picture is currently tracking 47% ahead of Oppenheimer, which ultimately went on to gross a record-breaking $180 million in IMAX format.
IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond has already hailed the weekend as a “historic moment,” asserting that watching The Odyssey on any other screen runs contrary to the director’s original creative vision. Excellent reviews and enthusiastic word-of-mouth guarantee the blockbuster long legs and a sustained run at the box office.
Source: Variety
