Christopher Nolan's forthcoming film The Odyssey has effectively cleared the summer release schedule, with rival studios avoiding the period around its launch rather than compete for cinema screens. The Guardian's culture newsletter argues this illustrates Nolan's unique status as the last "event cinema" director whose name alone guarantees box-office dominance, regardless of genre or subject matter, at a time when few other film-makers or even A-list stars can reliably open a blockbuster on their own.

The only notable competition in the week of The Odyssey's release is a batch of Aardman rereleases and a poorly received Animal Farm adaptation, with a Pinocchio-inspired horror film following the week after; the next genuine blockbuster, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, does not arrive until 31 July. Starring Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway and Tom Holland, The Odyssey tackles the "swords and sandals" epic, a genre widely seen as commercially declining, yet is still expected to become the biggest film of the year, following the pattern set by Nolan's Oppenheimer, which was only kept from that title by Barbie.