Unsurprising to anybody who watched it, The Odyssey is officially Christopher Nolan’s biggest hit ever. So far, the film has grossed $1.1 billion at the box office. It was also a smash for IMAX, making the company almost $290 million.
The film added a month to its run in the highly-coveted IMAX 70mm format, and the new showings are already selling out around the country. Seeing Nolan’s newest movie in its “intended format” has become a status symbol in the moviegoing community.
All of this is even before the film premieres in China on August 14. As the second-biggest moviegoing country, the box office effect is bound to multiply.
Nolan’s effect on the film community, especially the traditionalists, has certainly cemented his place in the director’s hall of fame. From the Dark Knight trilogy to even his more recent work with Oppenheimer, Nolan just keeps selling out theaters.
The Odyssey was also a huge milestone for IMAX, becoming its highest-grossing film of all time. It has made the company $289 million at the time of writing. Another thing that made the film revolutionary was the use of IMAX cameras and equipment. Nolan commissioned special sound-dampening equipment from the company and was able to make The Odyssey the first-ever feature-length film done entirely with IMAX cameras. The company’s CEO, Richard Gelfond, discussed the historic landmark in an interview with Variety.
“We had the very highest of hopes for ‘The Odyssey’ from the start, but it somehow continues to exceed them. Its historic performance is headlining what we expect will be our best year ever at the global box office.”
Though most movies can be seen in IMAX, The Odyssey is on a short list of films this year that were filmed for IMAX, also including Dune: Part Three and The End of Oak Street. Though they may not be entirely filmed using IMAX cameras, who is to say these selections won’t be able to compete and make it a truly historic year for the company?