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It’s a three-hour swords-and-sandals epic that faced backlash from online trolls who got all butthurt over trumped-up casting controversies.
But despite the bladder-busting runtime and the threatened boycotts, The Odyssey just became the biggest blockbuster of Christopher Nolan’s career.
The Oscar-winning filmmaker’s highly anticipated epic stormed into theaters this weekend, delivering a jaw-dropping $264 million worldwide opening and setting a new career-best debut for the acclaimed director.
The film earned an estimated $124.5 million domestically while bringing in another $133.3 million overseas, making it the biggest global launch of Nolan’s career and one of the strongest openings of 2026.
The impressive debut surpasses the global opening weekends of previous Nolan blockbusters, including The Dark Knight Rises and the Oscar-winning Oppenheimer.
Despite the film’s R rating and nearly 3,000-year-old source material, audiences flocked to theaters to see the filmmaker’s ambitious adaptation of Homer’s classic epic.
Premium formats played a huge role in the film’s success, with IMAX screenings selling out in many locations and contributing a massive share of the opening weekend haul.
Industry analysts expect the movie to enjoy a lengthy theatrical run thanks to rave reviews, glowing audience reactions and strong word of mouth.
Matt Damon leads the sprawling cast as Odysseus, joined by Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, and several other A-list stars.
Universal has been betting big on the film for months, and that gamble appears to be paying off in spectacular fashion.
Now the biggest question is just how high the film can climb.
With several major international markets still to come and relatively little blockbuster competition until the end of the month, box office experts believe The Odyssey has a realistic shot at joining the coveted $1 billion club.
If the film continues at anything close to its opening pace, Christopher Nolan may soon add yet another historic box office milestone to his already remarkable resume.
Homer experiencing a cultural renaissance a few millennia after his death wasn’t on our 2026 bingo card, but it seems that some stories never lose their appeal.
