Nolan’s The Odyssey becomes his highest-grossing film at $1.1bn
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Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" has become his highest-grossing film ever, reaching $1.1 billion worldwide over the weekend and overtaking 2012's "The Dark Knight Rises" ($1.08 billion, unadjusted for inflation). The sword-and-sandal epic, adapted from Homer's poem and starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, has simultaneously become Imax's biggest release of all time, taking $289 million and surpassing 2009's "Avatar" ($271 million). The milestones matter because the film's theatrical run is far from over, with strong box office momentum continuing and a major market yet to open.
The film has grossed $461 million domestically and $643 million internationally, including $110 million globally in its fourth weekend alone, and has not yet opened in China, the world's second-biggest cinema market, where it debuts on 14 August. It is currently the second-biggest film of the year behind "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" ($1.67 billion) and the second-highest-grossing R-rated release ever, behind "Deadpool and Wolverine" ($1.3 billion). As the first feature shot entirely with Imax cameras, it has taken $147.3 million in Imax revenue domestically and $141.8 million internationally, while Nolan's films have now grossed $7 billion combined, with three crossing the billion-dollar mark.
- "The Odyssey" is now Nolan's biggest film, at $1.1 billion globally
- It's also Imax's highest-grossing release ever, at $289 million
- Film hasn't opened in China yet, with momentum still building
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Christopher Nolan is the British-American director behind films such as "Inception", "Interstellar" and the "Dark Knight" trilogy, known for large-scale, effects-heavy films shot on physical film rather than digitally. His latest work, "The Odyssey", is a big-budget adaptation of the ancient Greek epic poem attributed to Homer, starring Matt Damon as the wandering hero Odysseus. It is also notable as the first feature film shot entirely using Imax cameras, a large-format film technology usually reserved for select scenes rather than whole productions.
Box office totals are widely used to judge how successful a film is commercially, tallying ticket sales worldwide across its cinema run rather than just its opening weekend. Comparisons between films are usually made in raw dollar terms without adjusting for inflation, meaning older blockbusters can be overtaken more easily as ticket prices rise over time. Imax-specific earnings are tracked separately, as a marker of how well a film performs in premium large-screen formats.
These figures matter because they help place "The Odyssey" among the biggest commercial successes of Nolan's career and of the format he helped popularise, while the film's run is still ongoing, with its release in China, one of the world's largest cinema markets, yet to come.
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Originally published by Variety as “‘The Odyssey’ Is Christopher Nolan’s Highest-Grossing Movie Ever With $1.1 Billion and Imax’s Biggest Release of All Time With $289 Million”.