Christopher Nolan's latest film, The Odyssey, has opened to a staggering $264.1 million worldwide, setting a new personal best for the director and overcoming significant online backlash. The Greek epic, which stars Anne Hathaway, Matt Damon, Zendaya, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, and Charlize Theron, surpassed the $249 million opening of 2012's The Dark Knight Rises.
Record-Breaking International Debut
The film earned $139.6 million internationally, Nolan's largest overseas opening, ahead of The Dark Knight Rises and Oppenheimer. It launched in 73 territories on 25,600 screens and became Nolan's biggest opener in 48 countries, including France, Italy, Brazil, and India. It ranks as the second-best R-rated movie debut abroad, behind only Deadpool & Wolverine (2024). Universal's president of distribution, Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, said: 'With The Odyssey, we had the extraordinary opportunity to unite moviegoers worldwide around a story that has resonated across cultures for centuries. Christopher Nolan's passion, vision and unique cinematic voice consistently drive anticipation and attendance on a truly global scale.'
Financial Success and Critical Acclaim
The Odyssey's budget was $250 million, with marketing costs of $125 million, totaling $375 million before the theater cut. The strong debut has already allowed the film to break even. Critics have praised the film, with The Daily Telegraph calling it a 'fearsome and trailblazing machine of a movie', The Independent hailing it as a 'blockbuster of literally unprecedented scale', and The New York Times commending Nolan for 'turning a 3,000-year-old poem into a smart, thoughtful film with Old Hollywood allure'. Metro's five-star review by Tori Brazier described it as 'gripping' and 'timeless'. The film holds a 95% fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 88 on Metacritic.
Backlash and Review-Bombing
Despite the success, The Odyssey faced coordinated review-bombing online, with 37% of Rotten Tomatoes reviews giving top marks but 13.9% awarding the lowest score. The backlash was fueled by casting choices, particularly Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy. Elon Musk criticized the casting, accusing Nolan of 'p***ing on Homer's grave'. Nyong'o responded: 'This is a mythological story. I'm very supportive of Chris's intention with it... Our cast is representative of the world.' Additionally, Elliot Page's casting as Sinon drew transphobic comments. Nolan defended Page, telling Rolling Stone: 'He brings something really special to it... I think he did an incredible job.'
Technical Achievement
The Odyssey is the first film shot entirely on IMAX's 70mm film cameras. Metro's Tori Brazier noted: 'You can't really give writer-director Nolan the credit for such a rich story, but you can praise him for how he's telling it... It feels like there will be a 'before The Odyssey' and 'after The Odyssey' line drawn in cinema now.' The film is in cinemas now.
