Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has reached another major milestone, becoming the highest-grossing film in the history of the BFI IMAX in London. The achievement puts Nolan’s latest blockbuster ahead of James Cameron’s Avatar, which previously held the record at one of the United Kingdom’s most prestigious IMAX venues.
The Odyssey has generated £2,683,987 in ticket sales from the single BFI IMAX screen after attracting more than 101,000 admissions. The movie has also recorded a remarkable 95% occupancy rate across currently available showtimes, demonstrating the sustained demand for Nolan’s large-format adaptation of Homer’s epic.
The result is particularly notable because The Odyssey was specifically designed to take advantage of IMAX technology. The movie was filmed entirely using IMAX film cameras, making its presentation at BFI IMAX especially significant for audiences seeking to experience Nolan’s intended format.
The Odyssey Beats Avatar at a Major IMAX Venue
The BFI IMAX in Waterloo features one of the largest cinema screens in the UK, measuring approximately 26 metres wide and almost 20 metres high. For The Odyssey, audiences can also watch the film using a rare IMAX 70mm print, giving the London venue an important connection to the movie’s large-format presentation.
The film’s record-breaking run did not begin with its theatrical release. Its June presales were already generating extraordinary interest, with 28,000 tickets sold during the first 24 hours, producing £750,000 in revenue. Four opening-weekend screenings subsequently sold out in less than an hour, roughly a year before the movie’s release.
The film also opened strongly at the venue, earning £219,867 during its first three days and becoming the BFI IMAX’s highest-grossing opening weekend at the time.
The Odyssey now sits above Avatar, Oppenheimer, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and several other major blockbusters on the venue’s all-time rankings. Nolan himself dominates the list, with five films in the top 10, including The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Dunkirk and Interstellar.
The achievement further demonstrates the continued appetite for theatrical experiences built around premium large-format presentation. With The Odyssey becoming the BFI IMAX’s biggest film ever, Nolan has once again turned the format itself into a major part of the moviegoing event.
