Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" pulls $15 million in Thursday night previews

Universal said Thursday night previews for Christopher Nolan's epic "The Odyssey" are estimated at about $15 million, which would make it the strongest preview performance for a live-action title in the United States so far this year. The figure surpasses the $12.6 million preview earnings recorded by Lionsgate's "Michael" and exceeds the $10.5 million previews for Nolan's earlier film "Oppenheimer."

Rotten Tomatoes reports an audience score of 96 percent for "The Odyssey," the highest rating for a Nolan film, ahead of the 94 percent scores for "Batman Begins," "The Dark Knight" and "Memento," and above the 91 percent rating for "Oppenheimer."

Industry sources estimate advance ticket sales for the weekend to be between $30 million and $40 million. By comparison, previous releases such as "Wicked: For Good" and "Deadpool & Wolverine" recorded $60 million and $50 million in advance sales, respectively. IMAX 70mm showtimes for "The Odyssey" reportedly sold out a year in advance.

The preview earnings place "The Odyssey" behind Nolan's "The Dark Knight Rises" ($30.6 million) and "The Dark Knight" ($18.5 million) but ahead of other recent appointment-viewing releases, including James Cameron's 2022 "Avatar: The Way of Water" ($17 million) and Warner Bros.' "Dune: Part II" ($12 million). Universal did not respond to a request for comment.