Nolan’s The Odyssey hits major box office mark just 3 days into release
In new figures released this morning, the studio says The Odyssey has already chalked up a fresh benchmark less than a fortnight after launch.
If you've even glanced at a cinema schedule lately, you'll have noticed The Odyssey is everywhere — and it's not letting up. More than a week after launch, this epic is still absolutely thrashing the box office, with no serious competition in its path this weekend. Frankly, it's a pretty strong reminder why studios still punt so much on the odd tentpole, even when half seem to trip at the first hurdle.
This year's already seen a string of *underperformers*, even with fairly muted expectations, which just makes Christopher Nolan's latest domination all the more impressive. Really, Nolan's name alone is now enough to launch a film with a running start that most directors would sell their mum for.
The Odyssey grossed $300 million worldwide in only three days of release.
Box Office Top Trumps
To give you a sense of scale, The Odyssey landed with a domestic opening haul of $123.5 million, instantly crowning itself 2026's top-grossing live-action debut stateside. Globally, it managed $264.1 million in its opening frame – that's ahead of The Dark Knight Rises ($249 million), making this Nolan's best-ever start. It's now up in the elite R-rated opening club as well, sitting among the all-timers.
At time of writing, The Odyssey has notched up $181.7 million domestically and a casual $322 million worldwide, and it's not slowing. An extra little stat for you: it was already north of $300 million global in just three days. Not too shabby.
A Year of Hype, and the IMAX Grabs
It's no accident this one hit so big. Back when the project was formally announced in 2024, anticipation started simmering fast – people were properly buzzing that Nolan was tackling the classic source material. The excitement kept building with every sneak peek, trailer and press shot, and tickets for the IMAX run started vanishing up to a year in advance. Where it counted, whole patches of US cinemas were basically sold out on opening week. Not a bad problem to have, if you ask me.
Tactically, The Odyssey landed slap bang in the summer sweet spot and, curiously, the other studios seemed to clear out and let it have a free go at the audience. But next weekend it's got Spidey to face, in the form of Spider-Man: Brand New Day — that one's projected to do as much as $190 million on its opening, so expect a bit of a box office face-off shortly.
- IMAX 70mm slots in New York and Los Angeles are currently sold out right through to 19 August
- London IMAX screens booked until 10 September
- Nolan fans are apparently lurking online to snap up new IMAX release slots as soon as they appear
- IMAX keeping screens reserved for Dune: Part Three in December, but until then, The Odyssey has the big screens locked
Nolan's Brand Power
It's one thing to open big — it's quite another to actually hang on. But Nolan's got form there, too. Oppenheimer (in case you forgot) ran for 123 days in cinemas and wound up at $330 million domestic, having started with just $82 million on opening. The Odyssey is heading for his personal bests: it's already made almost $182 million at home in just nine days. For reference, Nolan's domestic record is $448 million (The Dark Knight Rises). The Odyssey has a way to go — but at this rate, it's looking like another classic case of Nolan simply outlasting the field.