Director Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has blown box office expectations out of the water with an opening weekend that brought home an incredible $264.064 million worldwide.
The split puts the adaptation at a domestic haul of $124.5 million, with international markets accounting for the other $139.564 million. The global total marks Nolan’s biggest box office opening weekend ever, towering over his previous achievements, including The Dark Knight Rises at $249 million and The Dark Knight at $198 million.
“Incredibly rewarding to see the palpable excitement in theatres this weekend with the release of The Odyssey,” Universal told Deadline. “Once again, Christopher Nolan has crafted an epic adventure on a scale rarely seen as audiences respond with not only tremendous results at the box office, but with reactions to the film that are beyond stellar.”
Early reports had The Odyssey expected to bring in an already strong $90 million to $100 million domestically and $257.8 million globally. At $124.5 million domestically and $264.064 million worldwide, it’s clearly sailed past those estimates.
Variety reported that the film cost $250 million to produce and $125 million to promote. That makes it one of the more expensive theatrical productions of the year so far, but with its first few days already putting it past its production budget, it likely won’t be long before it completely recoups those costs.
The Odyssey, the 13th feature-length film directed by Nolan, premiered July 17 and stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Zendaya as Athena, Robert Pattinson as Antinous, Elliot Page as Sinon, Lupita Nyong’o as Helen/Clytemnestra, and many, many more. Propped up as an almost three-hour, modern adaptation of Homer’s Greek epic and the latest built-for-Imax project from a Best Picture-winning filmmaker, it’s easy to see why expectations for this particular movie already felt extraordinarily high.
Despite this – and despite the months-long campaign against the film that saw its pre-release marketing marred by “controversy” online – Nolan seems to have firmly come out on top. The journey ahead will see the star-studded adventure hoping to maintain momentum through each proceeding weekend. Although how that will play out remains to be seen, many are already expecting to see it at least break through the fabled $1 billion milestone.
For comparison, Nolan’s previous project, 2023’s Oppenheimer, pulled $180.4 million in its opening weekend. The Barbenheimer phenomenon helped the R-rated J. Robert Oppenheimer biopic finish its time in theaters just shy of $1 billion with a global total of $975.8 million (via Box Office Mojo). Only time will reveal how far The Odyssey’s sea legs will be able to carry it, but for those who have seen it (and recorded their thoughts on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes), it seems to be one movie worth showing up for.
Meanwhile, as shared by Variety, Disney’s live-action Moana movie came in second, with its total now coasting at $178.4 million. Minions & Monsters and Toy Story 5 tied for third, with the former’s global haul sitting at $323.9 million, while the latter has reached $958.4 million. Supergirl has a worldwide total of just $120 million.
IGN gave The Odyssey an 8/10 review. “The Odyssey adapts Homer through a new eye that brings a sense of horror and existential angst to the story – and some humor too,” we said. “It may not be a perfect movie, but it’s a pretty great moviegoing experience all the same.”
The Odyssey has arrived, but its box office opening weekend will be far from the last we’ll hear of it – or its director. For more while we wait for updates, you can read about the long and winding road Nolan took to get here. You can also see Pattinson recall the time he thought he heard Damon having a “really bad toilet experience” while filming.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
