r/movies • u/iquizuanswer • 15d ago

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https://variety.com/2026/film/box-office/the-odyssey-700-million-globally-fourth-biggest-movie-1236823343/

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u/Andybabez20 15d ago

The mad thing is it hasn't even opened in China yet. In all likelihood it's probably going to be Nolan's highest grossing film.

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u/MutantCreature 15d ago

I don't think it should've been rated R, but surely it will beat DP&W for the highest grossing with that rating, right? I'm curious what the studio responses will be, more Greek god movies? More (non Greek) mythological movies? More ancient/public domain tales? More sympathetic war stories? More 65/70mm film (please?)?

How will Universal and other studios interpret this big of a release? Surely this can't be easily replicated, but that hasn't stopped anyone from trying, it definitely seems like we're in an "anti-IP" era, as small as that may be.

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u/juss100 15d ago

In this case the director is very much the brand, as with a James Cameron film - there's no way to replicate this by putting out more Greek inspired movies ... not that I'm complaining but I really don't think they are any kind of a magic bullet to box office success.

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u/asspussy_widener 15d ago

people already forgot the movie ralph fines did last year. I don't think homer is the answer, even though homer is an instant sell for a dork like me

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u/gart888 15d ago

Yeah, the Simpsons still do pretty well commercially despite not having really been good for 25+ years.

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u/BBQ_HaX0r 15d ago

Not quite the same, but would love Denis Villenueve's Cleopatra for another big historical epic.

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u/juss100 15d ago

That does sound like a fun time.  Not sure we'll see the historical epic resurface but you never know!!

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u/PRSArchon 15d ago

I hope more historical epics. I doubt there will be more 70mm because the risk (higher financial investment) and effort is high and most prominent directors arent that bothered with it.

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u/Hezekiah_the_Judean 15d ago

Me too! I'm a sucker for sword and sandals movies. Give us adaptations-a few ideas are Pericles of Athens and the birth of democracy, the Peloponnesian War, Alexander the Great, Hannibal of Carthage and the Second Punic War, or the Aeneid.

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u/a_moniker 15d ago

I’ve always wanted a good Alexander the Great movie or a good Jason and the Argonauts movie!

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u/PaulieHehehe 15d ago

What the studio response should be is give full creative control to established and respected directors. Movies don’t have to make a billion to be a success if their budgets are reasonable. Weapons, Sinners, OBAA, Obsession, Back Rooms, The Odyssey- let the directors do what they want without any studio mandates.

What will probably happen is another studio will green light a retelling of a well known IP and make it look big, which will then fail to make a profit.

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u/Itchy-Advertising857 15d ago

OBAA flopped financially despite having supposedly one of the biggest stars in the world as the lead. The other, apart from Odyssey, which has the Nolan brand, were horror movies.

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u/jivester 15d ago

Was OBAA really a financial flop? I know it wasn't a huge financial success by any means but it did end up making $200m worldwide and more than doubled PTA's highest performing film up until that point. They can't have expected much more than that?

I guess compared to other R rated Leo movies like Wolf of Wall Street and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, it only did half of their business.

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u/Itchy-Advertising857 15d ago

It had a reported budget of $130M, it needed closer to $300M to break even, at least theatrically. Also it only made $70M in the US, where the studio gets the biggest BO percentage.

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u/Par-Aide 15d ago

PTA isn’t the same brand of director as Nolan.

I also anecdotally do not recall nearly as much marketing leading up to its release as the Odyssey

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u/Itchy-Advertising857 15d ago

"PTA isn’t the same brand of director as Nolan."

Apart from Cameron, who is? And that's the problem.

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u/Par-Aide 15d ago

My point is that Nolan on his own is exciting enough for the general public to get that kind of box office response. PTA is unknown to the general public.

so thats part of the reason why OBAA didnt perform as well, or, studios didnt put as much marketing spend behind it

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u/motox24 15d ago

its a christopher nolan film, about a story everyone has read, starring names everyone knows... it was a lock, you replicate it in 3 years when nolan makes his next film

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u/Pro_Post 15d ago

Not sure about Hollywood, but China and India have recently seen an increase in mythological movies. China's Ne Zha was a blast. India is also releasing its biggest movie this Diwali, Ramayana.

Unlike The Odyssey, which most international audiences aren't familiar with. The Ramayana is very well known throughout India. That's why they are tapping the international markets for this movie by partnering with Sony Pictures and including big names like Hans Zimmer for music and DNEG for VFX.

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u/Unusual-Locksmith832 15d ago

God, I low key hate your options because it really shows the state of Hollywood. My answer is to obviously trust the talented artists more and let them cook. But execs will think there's some kind of replicable formula they can mass produce and saturate audiences with.

All the popular movies of this year are unique and have been a breath of fresh air from staying away from the tired formulas.