Dethroning the long-standing record previously held by Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the $250 million spectacle proved that when it comes to experiencing celluloid cinema at its absolute apex, Waterloo is the ultimate global destination.
Over its maiden three-day weekend (Friday to Sunday), The Odyssey pulled in an unprecedented £219,867 ($296,147) from a single screen at the British Film Institute’s flagship venue in London. Operating at a virtually flawless occupancy rate, the single-screen theater saw moviegoers queuing around the Waterloo roundabout and flying in from across the globe just to witness Homer’s ancient Greek epic projected in true analog glory.
The historic performance places The Odyssey right at the top of the all-time BFI IMAX opening weekend rankings, cementing Waterloo as the spiritual home of Nolan’s cinematic universe.
Dethroning the Force: Passing ‘The Last Jedi’ and ‘Oppenheimer’
For nearly nine years, the BFI IMAX’s three-day opening weekend crown belonged to a galaxy far, far away. Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) set the venue’s gold standard back in 2017 when it opened to a staggering £216,454.
While galaxy-spanning blockbusters have dominated the Waterloo traffic circle for decades, Nolan’s mythological survival tale managed to top the Jedi Master. In doing so, The Odyssey also surpassed Nolan’s previous record-breaker at the venue, the Oscar-winning Oppenheimer (2023), which took £207,677 over its opening three days and now sits in third place overall.
The IMAX 70mm Pilgrimage: Why Waterloo?
The insatiable demand for tickets at the BFI IMAX comes down to a crucial technical feat: The Odyssey is the first feature film in history to be shot entirely with IMAX film cameras.
As one of only three venues in the entire UK capable of projecting true 15/70mm analog prints, the BFI IMAX offers a level of visual resolution, clarity, and physical depth that digital screens simply cannot replicate.
The frenzy around seeing the film as Nolan intended has sparked a literal international pilgrimage:
- 173 Screenings Sold Out: Across an eight-week run, 173 consecutive IMAX 70mm showtimes have completely sold out.
- Global Travelers: Audience members have reportedly booked flights to London from as far as Los Angeles, Toronto, and Singapore specifically to secure a seat at Waterloo.
- Massive Revenue: The cinema has already sold over 82,000 tickets, generating £2,169,882 in gross revenue and making it the venue’s third-highest-grossing film of all time before its second week has even begun!
“Across the BFI, our commitment to preserving and celebrating celluloid, alongside the filmmakers who continue to champion this format, speaks to the enduring power of storytelling. The extraordinary demand for our IMAX 70mm presentation of The Odyssey is ultimate proof of the appetite audiences have for cinema at its most authentic.” — Madeleine Mullett, BFI IMAX Programme Manager
An Emotional Premiere and a Mentor’s Legacy
Introducing the world premiere at the Waterloo venue, Sir Christopher Nolan shared a poignant moment with the crowd, dedicating the presentation to his late friend and IMAX mentor, David Keighley.
“This is a very special venue for us—it was in this very venue that I met the person to whom the film is dedicated,” Nolan told the opening-night audience. “I wish he were with us here tonight, but I know he’d be very proud… and very excited for you guys to be the first audience in the world to see it projected in this wonderful theatre on this wonderful screen from an IMAX film print.”
The Verdict
With a star-studded ensemble led by Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, and Zendaya, The Odyssey is proving that event cinema is alive, thriving, and hungrier than ever. Christopher Nolan took a 3,000-year-old myth and turned it into the biggest box-office event in London history—and the voyage is only just beginning.
Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ is playing in theaters and IMAX nationwide now.
