Nope, the numbers don’t add up. The trades are projecting an $87M domestic second weekend for “The Odyssey,” but I and our friend over at EmpireCity Box Office see it differently—the numbers actually indicate Nolan’s epic might hit $90M this weekend, which would be only a 27% drop from its $124M opening last weekend.
That would be a record-low second-weekend drop for any film that opened with $100M+ in box office history. The movies are back, baby, and director IP is hot right now, with Nolan, Curry Barker, and Kane Parsons driving ticket sales to their blockbusters purely on the strength of their names alone. Hell, even Spielberg, with “Disclosure Day,” albeit an underperformer, still managed a $40M opening despite lukewarm trailers and mixed word of mouth.
Yes, “The Odyssey” is on a tear—it’s turned into a cultural event and is about to cross the $290M domestic mark in just ten days. That’s $640M+ worldwide. It will cross the $1B mark by the first week of August.
Right now, three movies have crossed $1B this year: “Michael” ($1.02B), “Super Mario Galaxy Movie” ($1.01B), and, just yesterday, “Toy Story 5” ($1.01B). “The Odyssey” will be the fourth, and “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” the fifth, as it’s eyeing a near-record $300M domestic opening next weekend.
‘Brand New Day‘ won’t deter Nolan’s epic too much. Neither will yesterday’s online leak of the film, which Universal finally acknowledged in a statement — they’re now on the hunt for the leaker. “The Odyssey” needs to be seen on the biggest screen possible, and most moviegoers know that.
Shows are still sold out around the clock. Ticket demand hasn’t slowed down—many areas have 70mm IMAX showings booked through August. Premium formats, especially IMAX, have been a major driver, with fans actively seeking out large-format screenings rather than simply watching wherever seats are available.
Whatever Nolan wants to do next, Universal will just bow at his altar and give him a $300M budget to make whatever he wants. When has a filmmaker ever had this much power in Hollywood?