“The Odyssey” continued its epic box office journey, scoring a sensational $87 million from 3,943 North American theaters in its second weekend of release. That’s a tally that most films, especially of the R-rated variety, would be happy to earn in their opening weekends.
Ticket sales for “The Odyssey” declined just 30% from its sizable $123.5 million debut, a testament to the box office durability of director Christopher Nolan. Most tentpoles that open above $100 million would decline by 50% or more in subsequent weekends. To that end, the turnout for “The Odyssey” represents the second-biggest sophomore outing for an R-rated movie after Disney’s “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which earned $96 million in its second weekend after launching to a record-setting $221 million domestically.
After two weekends in theaters, Nolan’s big-budget adaptation of Homer’s epic poem, starring Matt Damon as the Greek king Odysseus, has grossed $286.4 million in North America and $639.6 million globally. “The Odyssey” will be tested next weekend with the release of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” Sony’s Marvel adventure, starring Tom Holland and Zendaya, could distract audiences. However, exhibitors are positively euphoric about the prospect of two massively popular movies to propel the typically slow month of August.
“Once or twice a year a movie opens big and then plays for weeks and weeks,” says David A. Gross, who publishes the box office newsletter FranchiseRe. “‘The Odyssey’ is showing that kind of holding power.”
“The Odyssey” has been a force in Imax, which makes sense because it’s the first feature shot entirely with the company’s high-tech cameras. (Since Imax cameras are loud, cumbersome and expensive, most movies are shot digitally and utilize Imax only for certain action sequences.) So far “The Odyssey” has generated $140 million globally in Imax, including $78 million domestically and $62 million internationally. Imax’s coveted 70mm screens — of which there are only 41 in the world — contributed $5.2 million over the weekend and $16.9 million to date, representing 12.1% of the total Imax box office. Since cinephiles know that Imax 70mm is Nolan’s preferred format, most of those showtimes are sold out into September.
“’The Odyssey’ has crossed over from hit blockbuster to global cultural event,” says Imax’s CEO Richard Gelfond. “Our results indicate that audiences around the world will line up to experience this one-of-a-kind film in Imax for weeks, if not months, to come.”
With euphoric word-of-mouth and outsized interest in premium large formats, “The Odyssey” is expected to remain a major draw throughout the summer and into the fall. It’ll wind up among the highest-grossing releases of the year. That prospect, along with the promise of Oscar nominations and the bragging rights of working with Nolan, the most bankable director of his generation, will easily justify the film’s price tag for Universal. The studio spent a staggering $250 million to produce and around $125 million to promote the movie.
“The Odyssey” wasn’t the only movie inspired by Greek mythology to land among the top five at the weekend box office. “Hadestown: The Musical,” a filmed version of the very successful Broadway show, had a strong debut with $9.6 million from 1,949 theaters. To compare, a theatrical version of “Hamilton” earned $10.1 million from 1,825 screens while Broadway live-captures of favorites like “Waitress: The Musical” and “Merrily We Roll Along” opened to $2.6 million and $1.3 million, respectively.
“Hadestown,” a folk-operatic retelling of the Greek myth of Orpheus, a musician who ventures to the underworld to rescue his fiancée, Eurydice, was supposed to play in theaters for just five days. Given the demand, though, Crosswalk and LD Entertainment — which released “Hadestown” with Bleecker Street — are extending the run with plans to add additional dates and showtimes.
Disney’s “Moana” and “Toy Story 5” captured second and third place on box office charts. “Moana” earned 10.5 million from 4,015 locations in its third weekend, a modest 40% decline. So far, the live-action version of the studio’s animated adventure has generated $102.5 million in North America and $228.2 million worldwide. Disney spent $250 million to reimagine the oceanic-set movie, so “Moana” will struggle to swim to profitability in its theatrical run.
“Moana” might not inspire a live-action sequel, but Disney has plenty to celebrate now that “Toy Story 5” is the highest-grossing movie of the year with $1.022 billion globally. The animated fivequel added $10 million from 3,375 domestic theaters in its sixth outing, a mere 27% decline from the prior weekend. With grosses at $448.6 million in North America and $573.5 million internationally, “Toy Story 5” is about to surpass its predecessor, 2019’s “Toy Story 4” ($1.07 billion) as the biggest installment in the beloved Pixar franchise.
Universal and Illumination’s “Minions and Monsters” tied with “Hadestown” for the No. 4 spot at the domestic box office. “Minions and Monsters” also brought in $9.6 million over the weekend, bringing its domestic tally to $155 million after four weekends on the big screen. The animated prequel has earned nearly $400 million globally, which is significant against its $85 million budget. However prior entries in the “Despicable Me” franchise have neared or surpassed the billion-dollar mark with ease, meaning the newest “Minions” may end up as the lowest-grossing in the series. Given the diminishing returns, Universal and Illumination, which have cranked out a new “Despicable Me” adventure about every two years since the original 2010 film, may want to wait a bit before Gru and his highlighter-yellow underlings return to theaters.
More to come…
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