The Odyssey Returns to IMAX and 70mm Screens After Passing $1.76 Billion

Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey returned to select IMAX theaters and 70mm screens on Friday, October 9, Universal announced on Tuesday. The film has grossed about $1.76 billion worldwide, making it Universal's highest-grossing film of all time before inflation adjustment, TheWrap reports. It passed the $1.67 billion record set by Jurassic World in 2015 during its ninth weekend.

The Announcement and What It Covers

The return was confirmed on the film’s official X account, whose post invited fans to experience the film in select IMAX theaters beginning October 9 and urged them to get tickets, according to WION. The same outlet notes that the Matt Damon starrer is also Nolan’s highest-grossing film and follows Odysseus on a decade-long journey back to Ithaca after the Trojan War. The re-release was not limited to North America. Glamsham reports that Universal, Warner Bros. Pictures India and IMAX brought the film back to Indian cinemas on the same date.

NewsBytes describes the return as coming months after the film’s original release and following a remarkable global box office run, and India TV News notes that Matt Damon stars as Odysseus. Not every outlet agrees on the start date. GamesRadar listed October 7 in its coverage of the screens changing hands, while Universal’s announcement, TheWrap, WION and the Indian report all say October 9.

A Box Office Record Set Piece by Piece

The film opened to $123.5 million in the US and Canada, according to The Numbers, and its production budget was $250 million. Its other records include the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time and the highest-grossing film ever for IMAX. It is Nolan's third film to pass $1 billion, and the first film that is not a sequel or remake to earn more than $1 billion outside the US and Canada since Avatar in 2010.

Early figures show how large the start was. The Associated Press, via the Hawaii Tribune-Herald, reported a worldwide opening of $264.1 million and said the domestic debut outperformed studio expectations of $117 million, setting a record for the biggest opening of the year for a live-action or R-rated film. Variety’s international report put the total at $639 million after two weekends, including $140 million from IMAX, and Hypebeast reported that the film crossed $1 billion in August before reaching $1.68 billion.

Where the Total Ranks

India TV News says the film is now the 12th highest-grossing movie of all time and the third-biggest non-franchise film ever. It also became Universal’s highest-grossing release in 45 international markets, including Australia, France, Italy, India and South Korea, though Jurassic World continues to hold Universal’s domestic record with $653.4 million. TheWrap adds that the film’s total surpasses the inflation-adjusted figure of The Dark Knight Rises, making it a career best for Nolan even after adjustment.

Why IMAX Is the Story

IMAX reported that the film delivered a $52 million global opening weekend in its theaters, and that its 70mm locations earned $6.3 million that weekend, an average of $153,000 per screen. The second weekend brought in $48 million, the highest-grossing second weekend in IMAX history, and the cumulative IMAX total reached $140 million, or 21.9% of the film’s global gross. By August 10, IMAX said the film had become its highest-grossing release of all time with $289 million, and its CEO, Rich Gelfond, said the record had fallen with at least a month still left to run on screens worldwide. Gelfond also thanked Nolan, producer Emma Thomas and the Universal team for the achievement and said IMAX expected its best year ever at the global box office.

IMAX’s own numbers include a North American total of $147 million at the time, the highest for any domestic release, and a single-title record for the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, which had grossed $2.8 million. In India, Glamsham reports that IMAX screens alone collected more than ₹100 crore, surpassing the record previously held by Oppenheimer.

The 70mm Numbers

The 70mm presentation has been a standout inside IMAX’s own totals. By July 27, IMAX reported that its 70mm film locations had generated $16.9 million in global box office, averaging $412,000 per screen and accounting for 12.1% of the film’s IMAX total. The October 9 return applies only to select IMAX theaters and 70mm screens, according to TheWrap.

Competition on the Calendar

Variety noted during the film’s opening stretch that Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story 5 had surpassed $1 billion and stood as the highest-grossing movie of 2026 with $1.02 billion at that point. Hypebeast reports that the film opened in China on August 14, adding another large market to the global total.

The Screens Change Hands Again

The IMAX 70mm screens had run the film all summer. Comic Basics, citing JoBlo, reports that they were given up last weekend to Warner Bros.' Digger and are now going back to Nolan's film. You can read about that film's weekend in our Digger report. The digital IMAX run is expected to be short because Street Fighter opens on October 16, while the 70mm run could last for months. The next true IMAX 70mm release, Dune: Part Three, does not open until December 18.

The 70mm run had already been extended once. Hypebeast reported that the film’s IMAX 70mm engagement stretched into an 11th week through the end of September, and Comic Basics says the screens were then handed to Digger. GamesRadar’s coverage describes the return as arriving three months after release, just as the box office cools from a hot summer.

Heading Home on November 17

The Odyssey arrives on home entertainment on November 17 in physical and digital formats, according to NewsBytes citing The Week. The physical release is expected to include a three-disc 4K Ultra HD edition and a two-disc Blu-ray set, plus a limited SteelBook.