Nolan's 'The Odyssey' earns $17.6 million in Thursday previews, targets $80-100 million opening
Christopher Nolan's new film 'The Odyssey' collected $17.6 million from Thursday previews and is projected to open between $80 million and $100 million domestically.
Universal Pictures reported that Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" generated $17.6 million from Thursday previews across 3,900 North American screens. The studio expects the film to open between $80 million and $100 million domestically and to reach roughly $200 million worldwide, against a reported production budget of $250 million.
The movie, starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson and Lupita Nyong’o, retells the story of Odysseus's return home after the Trojan War. It is the first feature shot entirely with IMAX cameras, a factor the distributor hopes will attract audiences seeking premium formats.
"A meditative action movie both immense and intimate, albeit one whose flow is impeded by the inherently episodic nature of the nonlinear source material and some questionable casting choices," wrote David Rooney, chief film critic for The Hollywood Reporter.
The film holds a 96 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest score of Nolan's career to date. It follows Nolan's 2023 release "Oppenheimer," which opened to $82.4 million domestically and earned $975 million worldwide.
The weekend faces limited competition, with no other wide releases scheduled until Sony's "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" on July 31. International audiences may also be drawn to the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina, slated for Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.