Christopher Nolan has a slew of massive box office hits to his name, but none have been bigger than his Batman films. As one might expect, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises are the highest-grossing movies of his career, each bringing in over $1 billion worldwide. The combination of Nolan’s distinct filmmaking style and the superhero genre’s popularity make those films difficult to beat. Batman, after all, has been a pop culture icon for decades, meaning any movie starring him is a massive draw. Nolan’s superhero days seem to be behind him, so at one point, his fans would be forgiven if they thought nothing would be able to top The Dark Knight Rises. But with The Odyssey, Nolan has pulled it off.
According to Deadline, The Odyssey is now estimated to earn $120.5 million domestically in its opening weekend, the best start for a live-action film this year so far. Internationally, the fantasy epic has grossed $137.3 million, meaning its worldwide debut is a staggering $257.8 million. That is the biggest opening for a Christopher Nolan movie (unadjusted for inflation) — far more than the likes of The Dark Knight Rises ($198 million) and Oppenheimer ($180 million).
It was always anticipated that The Odyssey would be one of 2026’s biggest hits, but even die-hard Nolan fans may not have predicted this. Coming into the weekend, projections had a range of $85-100 million domestically, and The Odyssey surged past that with ease. In a summer that’s been defined by studio tentpoles struggling to live up to expectations, The Odyssey is the rare release this season that actually outperformed its estimates, giving the box office the shot in the arm it needed after the likes of Moana and Supergirl bombed.
The Odyssey is a Christopher Nolan adaptation of famous source material and IMAX tickets were selling out a full year in advance, but seeing these results play out is still astonishing. The Odyssey is a three-hour, R-rated epic. Protracted run times can limit the number of daily screenings a theater is able to book, and the R rating can limit a film’s potential audience. The Odyssey is further proof that Nolan is in a league of his own when it comes to box office prowess. His name alone is powerful enough to draw large crowds to see anything — whether it’s a sweeping tale with gods and monsters or a historical drama fueled by extensive dialogue sequences.
A record-breaking opening is a tremendous start, obviously, but the real test for big-budget blockbusters is the second weekend. It’s imperative for these types of productions to have strong legs so they continue to make money and turn a profit. The Odyssey shouldn’t have anything to be concerned about on that front. Not only is the film doing well commercially, it’s earned widespread critical acclaim. Its Rotten Tomatoes score is the highest of Nolan’s career. Word of mouth has been outstanding; The Odyssey is considered a true must-see cinematic experience, with high demand for premium format screenings in particular. It’s going to be the top pick for general audiences throughout the week, especially since there aren’t any new high-profile releases debuting next week to take away screens or attention.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrives at the end of the month, and that’s going to be a massive draw in its own right. Early box office projections suggest an opening weekend of $190 million domestically, but it could be much higher than that based on the pre-sales figures. Brand New Day isn’t going to wrestle the IMAX screens away from The Odyssey, but that’s shaping up to be the event that will close out the summer moviegoing season. The Odyssey‘s time at the top of the charts will surely be over by the time Spider-Man opens, but if Barbenheimer taught us anything, it’s that two major releases can peacefully coexist and post strong numbers. Tom Holland fans could even make “Brand New Odyssey” their own personal Barbenheimer and book double features. The Odyssey isn’t going to tank once Spider-Man arrives.
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