Matt Damon in The Odyssey.Credit : 

Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is a box office triumph.

The film earned more than $264 million at the box office this weekend, with $124.5 million collected from 3,919 theaters in the United States and another $139.6 million brought in internationally, per Variety.

The outlet reported that it marks the third-largest opening for a movie in the U.S. in 2026, following Toy Story 5 ($159 million) and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ($131 million).

Per Variety, The Odyssey also marks director Nolan’s biggest global opening. The Dark Knight Rises previously raked in $249 million, not adjusted for inflation, and its predecessor, The Dark Knight, brought in $198 million, also not adjusted for inflation.

Meanwhile, recently released Oppenheimer — which won seven Academy Awards in 2024, including Best Picture and Best Director for Nolan, 54, among various other accolades — brought in $180 million internationally.

The epic, which premiered worldwide Friday, July 17, serves as Nolan’s directorial follow-up to his Oscar-winning biopic, Oppeneheimer. His newest project is an adaptation of the ancient Greek poet Homer’s epic tale, which follows the cunning King of Ithaca, Odysseus (Matt Damon), as he endures a difficult, decade-long journey to return home after fighting a war overseas.

The official trailer offers a look at Damon, 55, starring in the leading role, illustrating scenes from Greek mythology alongside a supporting cast of box office heavy-hitters such as Zendaya, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson.

The prophecy of the film’s success was foretold when 70mm screening tickets for The Odyssey sold out quickly upon release one year before the movie was set to debut, according to The Los Angeles Times. Theaters in Manhattan now near instantaneously sell out screenings at times ranging between 7 a.m. and 3 a.m., with tickets at Lincoln Theater going for over $1,000 for resale on eBay, according to The Washington Post.

Even ahead of the film’s public premiere, it received rave reviews from critics. Currently holding strong with a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Nolan’s The Odyssey was described as “a visual masterpiece” by Laura Sirikul for Forbes and is set to become his highest rated movie of all time.

Preview screenings for The Odyssey on Thursday, July 16, grossed $17.6 million, a total that beat Toy Story 5’s preview number of $17.5 million, per Deadline. The film earned the best preview numbers yet of 2026.

According to Deadline, 25% of the film’s preview sales were grossed from IMAX viewing experiences.

Previous on-screen adaptations of the Odyssey include the 2024 film The Return starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche, as well as a 1997 miniseries and a film shot in Italy in 1954.

The Odyssey is in theaters now.