Christopher Nolan's latest release The Odyssey is making great strides in India in terms of box office revenue, inching towards the Rs 200 crore mark in just 20 days of release. But the film's IMAX collections too have been parallely quietly rising. Currently, the epic mythological film collected Rs 63 crore across 34 IMAX screens in just 17 days, overtaking the lifetime IMAX collections of the filmmaker's previous movie Oppenheimer.
The record came after Warner Bros. Discovery, Universal Pictures International, IMAX Corporation and exhibition partners mounted a weeks-long campaign featuring exclusive merchandise, fan experiences and exhibitor-led initiatives that kept audience interest alive throughout the film's theatrical run.
Oppenheimer, released in 2023, made Rs 50 crore on IMAX screens during its entire theatrical run, which has now been thwarted by his latest release The Odyssey. With his feat, Nolan has become the only filmmaker whose films occupy the top two spots among the country's highest-grossing IMAX releases.
Anticipating this success and expressing his happiness, Denzil Dias, Vice President and Managing Director, India Theatrical, Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement, "Christopher Nolan came to Mumbai in July and told us Indian audiences are among the most enthusiastic and knowledgeable in the world. This is the proof. The top two highest-grossing IMAX releases in India's history are both his films. Not one, but two films from the same director, made the same way, for the same reason, because he believes cinema is meant to be seen at the scale only IMAX can give it."
He further added, "India agreed with Oppenheimer. India has now agreed twice, and this time it took seventeen days, not an entire run. When a filmmaker builds his entire career around convincing audiences that the biggest screen is the only screen worth choosing, and an audience answers him this decisively, and this quickly, that is not a box office record. That is a promise on both sides."
Worldwide, The Odyssey is nearing the $1 billion milestone. It is based on Greek king Odysseus' (Matt Damon) long and ardous 10-year-long journey after the Trojan war to reunite with his wife Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and son Telemachus (Tom Holland).
The star-studded cast also features Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong'o, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Bill Irwin, Samantha Morton, Jesse Garcia, Will Yun Lee, Rafi Gavron, Shiloh Fernandez, Mia Goth, among others.
Oppenheimer, headlined by Cillian Murphy, is based on the life of Robert Oppenheimer, the American theoretical physicist who is called the 'father of the atomic bomb' and his role in the Manhattan Project during World War II. It was nominated for thirteen awards at the 96th Academy Awards and won seven, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor.