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‘The Odyssey’ Opening Weekend Beats ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ to Break BFI IMAX Records in U.K.
Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" has broken the opening-weekend box office record at the BFI IMAX in central London, surpassing the mark previously set by "Star Wars: The Last Jedi." The film took £219,867 ($300,000) over its first three days at the venue, which houses the UK's largest cinema screen and is one of only three IMAX cinemas in the country able to show films in IMAX 70mm as Nolan intended. The milestone underlines the enduring pull of large-format film presentations and adds to a string of records the epic has already claimed since release.
The Odyssey overtook "The Last Jedi's" previous best of £216,454, with Nolan's own 2023 film "Oppenheimer" third at £207,677. The film also broke the theatre's 24-hour pre-sale record, selling 28,000 tickets a year ahead of release for £750,000, beating figures previously set by "Dune: Part Two" and "Oppenheimer." Overall it has notched more than 82,000 admissions across 173 consecutive sold-out IMAX 70mm screenings over eight weeks, grossing £2,169,882 and making it the venue's third-highest-grossing film ever, with fans reported travelling from as far as Singapore, Los Angeles and Toronto to see it.
In short
- "The Odyssey" set a new BFI IMAX opening-weekend box office record
- Beat "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" and Nolan's own "Oppenheimer"
- Also broke pre-sale records, selling £750,000 of tickets a year early
Explained simply
"The Odyssey" is a new epic film by director Christopher Nolan, known for creating ambitious large-scale cinema experiences. The film is distributed in IMAX 70mm format, a premium presentation that uses specialised cameras and projectors to deliver images and sound significantly larger than standard cinemas can offer.
The BFI IMAX in central London operates the UK's largest cinema screen and is one of only three venues in Britain with the equipment to project IMAX 70mm films. The specialised technology and massive screen size attract cinema enthusiasts from around the world, many of whom travel internationally specifically to see films in this format. Nolan is among the prominent filmmakers who advocate for this format because of the quality of its images and sound.
Records at the BFI IMAX show the audience demand for large-format cinema experiences. The venue uses specialised equipment that most cinemas do not possess, making it unique in the UK cinema landscape.
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