Christopher Nolan has done it again. ‘The Odyssey,‘ his sweeping, R-rated take on Homer’s ancient epic, stormed the worldwide box office this weekend, pulling in $264.1 million globally. That’s the biggest international launch of Nolan’s entire career.
The Universal Pictures release brought in $124.5 million domestically in North America (US and Canada) and $139.6 million internationally, easily beating the director’s previous record, 2012’s ‘The Dark Knight Rises,’ which opened to $249 million worldwide. It also topped 2008’s ‘The Dark Knight‘ ($198 million) and 2023’s Best Picture winner ‘Oppenheimer‘ ($180 million), making ‘The Odyssey‘ the biggest commercial win yet in a career already full of blockbusters.
‘The Odyssey’ International Box Office Numbers By Country
The film opened in 73 international markets. The United Kingdom and Ireland led the way with $17.4 million, followed by France at $13.7 million and Italy at $11.5 million. According to Deadline, this was Universal’s biggest-ever opening in 11 markets and Nolan’s biggest career opening in 48 territories, including France, Italy, India, Spain, Brazil, the Netherlands, and Poland.
At home, ‘The Odyssey‘ landed as the third-biggest opening of the year so far, behind only ‘Toy Story 5‘ ($159 million) and ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie‘ ($131 million). It’s Nolan’s best domestic debut since ‘The Dark Knight Rises,’ and the biggest opening weekend ever for an R-rated Universal movie. It also took the top spot for R-rated openings in 2026 and is being called the fourth-best R-rated debut of all time.
Matt Damon Leads Star-Studded Cast In Homer Adaptation
Based on Homer’s roughly 2,700-year-old poem, ‘The Odyssey‘ stars Matt Damon as the wandering king Odysseus, leading a huge cast that includes Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Elliot Page, Jon Bernthal and John Leguizamo. For Damon, it’s the biggest opening of his career. Audiences loved it, giving the film an “A” CinemaScore. Critics have kept it among the year’s best-reviewed movies, with a 95% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
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Premium formats played a big part in the numbers. ‘The Odyssey‘ is the first feature ever shot entirely on IMAX cameras, and that format made up about 23% of the domestic gross and roughly 15% of the international debut. IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond said the format was essential to experiencing the film the way it was meant to be seen, calling the weekend a “transcendent moment” for the company and predicting it will push more theaters to adopt IMAX.
Universal’s domestic distribution chief pointed to Nolan’s consistent ability to connect with audiences at a large scale as the reason behind the film’s success. Box office analyst Shawn Robbins, of Fandango and Box Office Theory, put it simply: “Death, taxes, and Christopher Nolan.“
Production Budget, Audience Data, And What Comes Next
Produced by Nolan and his longtime partner Emma Thomas through their Syncopy banner, ‘The Odyssey‘ reportedly cost $250 million to make, with another $125 million spent on marketing. That means it will need around $625 million in worldwide ticket sales just to break even. Early data on the audience showed a strong lean toward men, who made up 56% of the crowd overall and more than three-quarters of ticket buyers over 25, while half the audience fell between ages 18 and 34.
The film still hasn’t opened in several major markets, including China, Japan, and South Korea. So there’s plenty of room for the global total to grow in the coming weeks. Even so, ‘The Odyssey‘ has already rewritten the record books for one of Hollywood’s most reliable filmmakers, proving that even a three-hour, dialogue-heavy adaptation of a poem written thousands of years ago can still become a real global blockbuster.
You might also want to read: “I Definitely Hit the Limits”: Christopher Nolan Reveals When Fans Can Expect His Next Movie After ‘The Odyssey’
