[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/The-Odyssey-still.jpg”]
Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ has beaten ‘Oppenheimer’ at the box office in just 13 days
The film was hailed by critics across the board and officially became Nolan’s best-reviewed movie of his career
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has already beaten his Oscar winning epic Oppenheimer at the box office in just 13 days.
Although the latter went on to earn nearly $1billion (£750million) worldwide, it took 595 days to pull in $330million (£246.6million).
Now, according to Forbes, The Odyssey will pass that figure just 13 days after its release.
The blockbuster has not yet passed Nolan’s The Dark Knight or The Dark Knight Rises’ domestic box office totals, which were $534million (£399million) and $448million (£334.7million), respectively.
The director’s new movie is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic poem, with Matt Damon starring as Odysseus, the king of Ithaca who embarks on a treacherous journey home after the Trojan War.
It also stars Tom Holland as his son Telemachus and Anne Hathaway as his wife Penelope, alongside Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Samantha Morton and Mia Goth.
Recommended
Ahead of its release, the film was hailed by critics across the board and officially became Nolan’s best-reviewed movie of his career.
Despite that, a leading classics professor recently slated the movie slated, arguing it lacks “psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”.
In a five-star review, NME said that “cinema may have peaked” with Nolan’s epic and concluded: “It’s hard to see how cinema can get much bigger than this.”
The film also became the biggest live-action release of 2026 following its opening weekend, during which it earned $264million (£196million) worldwide.
Its release has additionally prompted a reported 550 per cent rise in online searches for people looking to learn Greek. Sales of Homer’s original poem are also said to have risen by 70 per cent compared with last year.
Elon Musk, meanwhile, has repeatedly criticised the film’s casting and claimed that his Grok AI tool will create a “historically accurate” version of the story before the end of 2026.
The owners of a replica Viking warship used during filming have also claimed that Universal has yet to reimburse them for damage sustained during the production. The studio has disputed the allegation and said that all relevant invoices were paid in full.
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Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has already beaten his Oscar winning epic Oppenheimer at the box office in just 13 days.
Although the latter went on to earn nearly $1billion (£750million) worldwide, it took 595 days to pull in $330million (£246.6million).
Now, according to Forbes, The Odyssey will pass that figure just 13 days after its release.
The blockbuster has not yet passed Nolan’s The Dark Knight or The Dark Knight Rises’ domestic box office totals, which were $534million (£399million) and $448million (£334.7million), respectively.
The director’s new movie is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic poem, with Matt Damon starring as Odysseus, the king of Ithaca who embarks on a treacherous journey home after the Trojan War.
It also stars Tom Holland as his son Telemachus and Anne Hathaway as his wife Penelope, alongside Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Samantha Morton and Mia Goth.
Recommended
Ahead of its release, the film was hailed by critics across the board and officially became Nolan’s best-reviewed movie of his career.
Despite that, a leading classics professor recently slated the movie slated, arguing it lacks “psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth”.
In a five-star review, NME said that “cinema may have peaked” with Nolan’s epic and concluded: “It’s hard to see how cinema can get much bigger than this.”
The film also became the biggest live-action release of 2026 following its opening weekend, during which it earned $264million (£196million) worldwide.
Its release has additionally prompted a reported 550 per cent rise in online searches for people looking to learn Greek. Sales of Homer’s original poem are also said to have risen by 70 per cent compared with last year.
Elon Musk, meanwhile, has repeatedly criticised the film’s casting and claimed that his Grok AI tool will create a “historically accurate” version of the story before the end of 2026.
The owners of a replica Viking warship used during filming have also claimed that Universal has yet to reimburse them for damage sustained during the production. The studio has disputed the allegation and said that all relevant invoices were paid in full.
[analyse_source url=”https://www.nme.com/news/film/christopher-nolans-the-odyssey-has-beaten-oppenheimer-at-the-box-office-in-just-13-days-3959824″]