Christopher Nolan's ‘The Odyssey' Sells Out in Imax 70MM a Year Ahead of Film's Release
A full year before the release of Christopher Nolan's epic The Odyssey, tickets went on sale to see the Universal event pic film in Imax 70mm film — the filmmaker's preferred format — at 25 or 26 locations over the July 17-19 weekend, in addition to Thursday afternoon screenings on July 16. Nolan's take on the classic Greek myth — starring Matt Damon as the eternal hero Odysseus — is being shot entirely on Imax film cameras, a first for a commercial feature.
More from The Hollywood Reporter
Box Office: 'Superman' Leaps Past $300M Globally, Nears $200M Domestically
Trump Reacts to 'Late Show' Ending: "I Absolutely Love That Colbert Got Fired"
Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon Shocked Over CBS' Decision to End 'Late Show': "F*** You and All Your Sheldons"
Imax officially announced the special offer on its social feed at midnight Thursday ET. Within an hour, 95 percent of seats were snapped up, according to exhibition sources, repping about a total of $1.5 million in sales, despite a relatively small pool of seats. As the night and day unfolded, there were reports of tickets being resold on eBay and other sites for anywhere between $300 and $400, compared to an average retail price of $25-$28, said one source.
By all accounts, it's the first time in history that tickets have gone on sale a year before a film's opening. The title is a follow-up to Nolan's Oscar-winning Oppenheimer, which did huge business in Imax theaters.
There are roughly 16 Imax sites in the U.S. that are part of the offering as of now. The July 17-19 weekend and preview showings are already entirely sold out at AMC Lincoln Square 13 in New York City, the Universal Cinema AMC at CityWalk Hollywood and the Regal Irvine Spectrum in Orange County. Elsewhere in California, 77mm seats are almost gone at Imax locations in San Francisco, Dublin and Ontario.
Elsewhere across the country, other sell-out Imax cinemas are in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Buford, Georgia; Indianapolis; Grand Rapids, Michigan; King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; and Dallas.
High-profile locations in Canada, where Imax is headquartered, quickly sold out, including the Cineplex Cinemas Mississauga Square and the Cineplex Cinemas Vaughan, both in Toronto.
Across the Atlantic, London's famous BFI Imax is sold out, as is London's Science Museum Imax auditorium. Seats are also almost gone in Imax's theater in Melbourne, Australia, as well as a location in the Czech Republic.
Imax screens ponied up more than $190 million of Oppenheimer's total global gross of $975.8 million, or 20 percent. The Odyssey has a net budget of $250 million, which will make it the most expensive film of Nolan's career. The improbable blockbuster success of the atomic energy biopic Oppenheimer proved yet again why Nolan is one of the few directors who can reliably deliver an all-audience event film, and The Odyssey's epic scope and A-list cast should prove a major draw.
In addition to Damon, the film stars Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Jon Bernthal, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong'o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Mia Goth.
The classic story follows the king of Ithaca as he undertakes a long and perilous journey home to his wife Penelope following the Trojan War. His challenges are many as he spends years encountering a succession of mythical beings, including the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, the enchantress Circe, and travels to the Underworld.
The first teaser trailer for Nolan's event pic debuted exclusively in theaters in front of Universal's Jurassic World Rebirth, which opened over the Fourth of July corridor to huge numbers and continues to be a major draw.
Releasing the trailer so early is a bit unusual, considering that The Odyssey is still filming, but an all-audience tentpole such as Rebirth provided an opportunity Universal and Nolan's team couldn't pass up, even if the teaser was leaked online. Word of the advance ticket sales were also leaked when certain theater chains jumped the gun and posted notices that tickets would go on sale for the select 70mm screenings July 17.
Best of The Hollywood Reporter
The 40 Greatest Needle Drops in Film History
The 40 Best Films About the Immigrant Experience
Wes Anderson's Movies Ranked From Worst to Best
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
Gwyneth Paltrow stars as Astronomer spokesperson after Coldplay kiss-cam scandal
NEW YORK — Astronomer has enlisted Gwyneth Paltrow as their temporary spokesperson after her ex-husband and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin caught the company's CEO and head of human resources cuddling at his concert. In a video shared on social media Friday night, Paltrow, seated behind a desk with her hands clasped, reveals she'd been hired 'on a very temporary basis to speak on behalf of the 300-plus employees at Astronomer.' 'Astronomer has gotten a lot of questions over the last few days,' the 'Shakespeare in Love' actress says. 'And they wanted me to answer the most common ones.' The first question posed to Paltrow reads: 'OMG what the actual f-?' The Oscar winner offers a soft smile and a nod before going on to discuss Astronomer rather than the scandal that cost the company its CEO, Andy Byron, and HR executive Kristin Cabot. 'Yes, Astronomer is the best place to run Apache Airflow, unifying the experience of running data, ML and AI pipelines at scale,' Paltrow cheekily explains. When asked how the company's social media team was doing, the Goop Founder, instead of answering, reveals there are still spots available for Astronomer's Beyond Analytics event in September. 'We will now be returning to what we do best, which is delivering game-changing results for our customers,' Paltrow concludes. 'Thank you for your interest in Astronomer.' The clip comes just more than a week after Byron and Cabot, both of whom are reportedly married to other people, attended a Coldplay concert together in Foxborough, Massachusetts. At one point during the night, the couple were blasted onto the jumbotron — but the moment they appeared on the big screen, both Byron and Cabot immediately tried to duck out of frame. 'Oh, look at these two,' Martin could be heard saying from the stage. 'All right, come on, you're OK,' the singer continued. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.' Video of the incident has since taken social media by storm, spawning no shortage of jokes and memes.
Fox News
a few seconds ago
- Fox News
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson pays tribute to 'immortal' Hulk Hogan: 'A childhood hero'
Wrestling legend Hulk Hogan died Thursday at the age of 71, and another WWE icon paid tribute to one of his heroes. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson posted on social media an emotional ode to "the immortal" wrestler, whom he called "a childhood hero." "In 1984, I gave you your 'HULKSTER' headband back, in the locker room in Madison Square Garden - I was the lucky kid [that] caught it when you threw it in the crowd. You were wrestling 'Mr Wonderful', Paul Orndorff that night in the main event," Johnson recalled. "You were shocked and so happy after the match because you told me that was your very last headband and if it weren't for me, you'd have no way of getting that exact one made again. You promised me that you would get more made and give me a Hulkster headband of my own as a thank-you gift. A month later in Madison Square Garden, you did just that. You kept your word, with a handshake and a 'thanks kid'. And that meant the world to that little 12-year-old boy." Johnson then reminisced on their legendary match at Rogers Centre at WrestleMania X8, a match that Johnson said "was to decide who would go down in history, as The Greatest of All Time." It remains one of the greatest matches of all time and one that has defined wrestling history. The post featured the fight on a small television, reminiscent of that of the late 90s and early 2000s. "When you kick out of my Rock Bottom finisher - just listen and FEEL that crowd go ELECTRIC…all for you. I've never felt anything like that in my entire wrestling career. It takes two to tango, but that historic crowd reaction was all for you," Johnson wrote. "You may have 'passed the torch' to me that night, but you, my friend….you 'drew the house' meaning you sold out every arena and stadium across the country in your prime as Hulk Hogan, on your way to becoming the greatest of all time."From deep in my bones, and on behalf of this wild and crazy world of professional wrestling that we love, I say to you now, and forever…Thank you for the house, brother… Thank you, for the house. RIP Terry Bollea aka Hulk Hogan." WWE paid tribute to Hogan on Friday night's edition of "SmackDown!" with a 10-bell salute, with many of its current superstars, and some of Hogan's old foes, on the stage. The tribute included clips of Hogan's decorated wrestling career and his entertainment ventures outside the ring. The SmackDown crowd erupted in applause and a chant of "Hogan! Hogan!" after the video concluded.
Gizmodo
2 minutes ago
- Gizmodo
‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Gets Muppet Fever In Season 4
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has done a lot of odd things in the course of its five-season mission. We've had musicals, fantasy episodes, full-on horror adventures, and even a murder mystery is on the horizon. Now, the show is boldly going in another kooky direction: a puppet episode. Announced today during Trek's blockbuster Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con, Jordan Canning (who directed season 2's 'Charades', but perhaps more crucially here, also directed seven episodes of the Fraggle Rock revival, Back to the Rock) will direct an episode in the upcoming fourth season of Strange New Worlds that will see the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise turned into puppets. Anson Mount's Captain Pike beamed into the convention to let fans know… well, kind of: Nothing else was revealed about the episode, other than the fact Paramount will be working with the fine purveyors of puppet technology at the Jim Henson Creature Shop to bring Pike and the rest of the crew to fabric life for the episode. Strange New Worlds' penultimate, fourth season is currently expected to hit Paramount+ sometime next year. That wasn't the only Strange New Worlds news out of the convention, however: with the show's third season currently airing, fans in attendance were treated to an early screening of next week's episode, 'A Space Adventure Hour'. Set to hit Paramount+ next Thursday, July 31, the Jonathan-Frakes-directed episode—which sees security chief La'an test out an early prototype holodeck system with a program that, in true Trek style, starts getting dangerous—will also stream for free between July 31 and August 6 on Pluto TV, Paramount+ (as well as its channels available through Amazon, Apple, and Roku), and the Paramount+ YouTube channel. Stay tuned to io9 for more Trek news right out of Hall H at SDCC 2025! Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
