Entertainment

Christopher Nolan's Fantasy Masterpiece Officially Returns to 1,000 Theaters

Nairavoice · Nov 5, 2026 · 4 min read

After the success of Oppenheimer in 2023, it’s safe to say that, coming into the year, there weren’t many movies higher on people’s list than his new fantasy epic. Oppenheimer fell just short of grossing $1 billion at the global box office, but it established Christopher Nolan‘s films as must-see events that have to be experienced on the biggest screen possible. In the months leading up to the film’s release, there were fans who doubted that the movie would be a hit at the box office due to its $250 million budget. It needed to make well over $500 million just to break even, but this proved to be an easy task for the film, which earned half of this back before the end of its opening weekend. It was far from done, though.

The Odyssey was one of the most successful word-of-mouth stories of all time, as fans continued to flock to the theater to check out the historical epic in premium formats for months after it first arrived in theaters. The total theater count has varied from weekend to weekend, as the movie has been removed from some screens but added to others to meet demand, but those who either missed seeing it or want to experience it again will have another chance.

On December 11, Universal Pictures is releasing The Odyssey back into over 1,000 theaters, including regular IMAX and the coveted 70mm IMAX format. There is no word yet on exactly how long the film will be back in theaters, but it will depend on how many people show up to the screenings.

The first film not in the English language to win Best Picture, in the Academy’s
92-year history to that point.
It took four Oscars in one night: Picture, Director, Original Screenplay and International
Feature.
It won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2019 by a unanimous jury vote, the first Korean film
to do so.
The Park family’s modernist house was not a location. It was built from scratch on an
outdoor lot.

Seven Oscars, including three acting wins for Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Jamie Lee
Curtis.
Michelle Yeoh became the first Asian woman to win Best Actress.
The visual effects were handled by a team of fewer than ten people, most of them
self-taught.
Ke Huy Quan had all but left acting for two decades before this role brought him back.

Seven Oscars, including Nolan’s first wins for directing and for Best Picture.
Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. both took their first Academy Awards for it.
Kodak engineered a black-and-white 65mm stock that did not previously exist so Nolan could
shoot those sequences on IMAX.
A three-hour, R-rated drama about theoretical physics that passed 950 million dollars
worldwide.

Four Oscars, among them Best Picture and Best Director for Iñárritu.
Emmanuel Lubezki’s win here was the middle of three consecutive cinematography Oscars,
after Gravity and before The Revenant.
Antonio Sánchez’s improvised drum score was ruled ineligible for the score category,
which caused a minor uproar.
The long-take illusion was built from a handful of extended shots joined by hidden cuts.

Four Oscars: Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, and Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem.
Adapted from Cormac McCarthy’s 2005 novel, with much of his dialogue carried over
intact.
Carter Burwell’s score runs about sixteen minutes and is nearly inaudible by design.
Roger Deakins was nominated twice that year, for this and The Assassination of Jesse James,
and won for neither.

Here’s Who Stars in ‘The Odyssey’?

Matt Damon stars in the lead role in The Odyssey as Odysseus, and he’s being eyed as a major contender to win the Academy Award for Best Lead Actor for his commanding performance in the film. Two of his co-stars, Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson, could also be in line for supporting performances in the film. While Tom Holland likely won’t receive an Academy Award nomination for his role as Telemachus, most critics and fans agree that the film proves he can do more than star as Spider-Man in Marvel movies. Additional cast members for The Odyssey include Elliot Page as Sinon, John Leguizamo as Eumaeus, Mia Goth as Melantho, Ryan Hurst as Mentor, Benny Safdie as Agamemnon, and Himesh Patel as Eurylochus.