‘The Odyssey’ Just Became the First Movie Ever To Cross $500 Million on IMAX Screens Alone

Christopher Nolan’s relationship with IMAX has always been central to his filmmaking identity, but ‘The Odyssey’ pushed that partnership somewhere entirely new. The film became the first feature ever shot completely with IMAX 70mm film cameras, a technical leap that required IMAX to develop custom sound-dampening equipment just to make the format viable for a full-length production.

That ambition translated almost immediately into record-shattering box office numbers. ‘The Odyssey’ became the fastest film ever to cross $200 million in global IMAX receipts within its first month alone, and went on to deliver four consecutive weekends earning more than $50 million on IMAX screens worldwide, a feat no other IMAX release had ever managed even twice in a row.

Now, that unprecedented run has produced its biggest milestone yet. ‘The Odyssey’ has officially become the first film in history to surpass $500 million in ticket sales on IMAX screens alone, a threshold no other movie, including 2009’s ‘Avatar,’ had ever come close to reaching.

Reflecting on the film’s earlier record-breaking pace, IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond didn’t hold back in praising the achievement. “On behalf of IMAX, I want to extend our congratulations and deepest gratitude to Chris, Emma, the entire team behind The Odyssey and our friends at Universal on this monumental achievement, shattering our longstanding box office record with at least a month left to run on IMAX screens worldwide,” Gelfond said in a statement.

‘Avatar’ had held IMAX’s all-time revenue record for more than 15 years before ‘The Odyssey’ arrived, finishing its entire theatrical run with $271 million on the format. ‘The Odyssey’ overtook that mark just weeks into its own release, and now sits with roughly a $230 million cushion above Avatar’s total lifetime haul, an almost unthinkable gap considering how untouchable that record once seemed.

‘THE ODYSSEY’ has officially become the first film ever to pass $500M on IMAX screens only. https://t.co/fcpzdnwqAh

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) September 13, 2026

Much of that continued momentum has come from IMAX’s decision to keep extending the film’s premium format run well beyond a typical theatrical window. The film’s 70mm presentation, screening in just 41 locations worldwide at the cinema-grade 18K resolution Nolan favors, has already generated tens of millions on its own, with Los Angeles’s TCL Chinese Theatre setting a new record for the most any single title has ever grossed at one IMAX location. IMAX has since extended the film’s run through September 30, giving it an eleven-week theatrical window in the format.

The final trailer for Christopher Nolan's ‘THE ODYSSEY’ has been released.

In theaters on July 17. pic.twitter.com/xn42TcX4aG

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) July 1, 2026

That kind of sustained performance has meaningfully boosted IMAX’s own business heading into the back half of 2026. The company has pointed to ‘The Odyssey’ as a driving force behind what it expects to be its best year ever, with roughly $1.4 billion in projected global box office revenue across its entire network of films.

For a filmmaker whose career has been defined by pushing large-format cinema to its technical limits, ‘The Odyssey’ crossing half a billion dollars on IMAX screens alone represents perhaps the clearest validation yet of that decade-long creative gamble. Given how much runway still remains on its extended theatrical window, it’s entirely possible this record keeps climbing even further before the film’s run finally winds down.

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