‘The Odyssey’ Just Proved It’s One of the Most Unstoppable IMAX Runs in Box Office History

Some blockbusters open big and fade fast. Others settle into theaters and simply refuse to leave. Christopher Nolan’s latest epic has firmly planted itself in the second category, turning what could’ve been a standard summer release into one of the longest-running IMAX phenomena in recent memory.

That staying power has become the real story of the summer box office season, especially as other major releases have come and gone around it. While plenty of films chase a strong opening weekend, ‘The Odyssey‘ has instead built its reputation on an almost unheard-of ability to keep pulling audiences back week after week.

Now, seven weekends into its release, ‘The Odyssey’ is still barely showing signs of slowing down in IMAX globally. According to a weekend-by-weekend breakdown shared by MovieHub, the film has grossed $51.8 million in its first weekend, $48 million in its second, $44.7 million in its third, $37 million each in its fourth and fifth weekends, $34.4 million in its sixth, and $24.6 million in its seventh.

That kind of consistency is nearly unheard of for a film this many weeks into release. Most blockbusters see steep drop-offs after their opening frame, but ‘The Odyssey’ has instead settled into a rare pattern of gradual, controlled declines that have kept it near the top of the IMAX charts for almost two straight months.

The film’s overall IMAX numbers back up just how historic this run has become. ‘The Odyssey’ overtook ‘Avatar’ to become IMAX’s highest-grossing release of all time, and IMAX screens have accounted for more than a quarter of the film’s total worldwide box office, an extraordinarily high share for any release.

Much of that success traces back to Nolan’s decision to shoot the entire film using IMAX cameras, a first for a theatrical release. Nolan and cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema worked directly with IMAX to develop new film camera technology specifically for the project, capturing roughly 2.1 million feet of IMAX film during production.

‘The Odyssey’ has also become Nolan’s highest-grossing film ever globally, surpassing ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ to claim that title. Along the way, it’s held onto the distinction of being the second-highest-grossing R-rated release of all time, trailing only ‘Deadpool & Wolverine.’

Part of what makes this run especially notable is that it hasn’t happened in a vacuum. ‘The Odyssey’ has maintained its box office strength even as major competitors like ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ have entered the marketplace, and it only added China to its international rollout weeks after its initial debut, giving it even more runway to keep climbing.

With IMAX screens expected to keep showing the film through at least mid-September, ‘The Odyssey’ still has plenty of room left to add to its already historic totals. For a nearly three-hour, R-rated adaptation of a 3,000-year-old epic poem, it’s hard to overstate just how remarkable this box office endurance has been.

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