The box-office reign of The Odyssey is far from over. After surpassing Deadpool & Wolverine to become the highest-grossing R-rated film in history, Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of the Homer epic is now Universal’s newly minted king, beating 2015’s Jurassic World for the earnings crown.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, the feature has collected US$1.68 billion globally, including a domestic haul of US$601.2 million, putting it slightly ahead of the latter’s US$1.67 billion. It’s also the biggest outing from the acclaimed director, breaking the previous record held by 2008’s The Dark Knight, which was the first comic book adaptation to hit the billion-dollar mark then. Since its debut weekend, The Odyssey has sailed past several other milestones, including the highest-earning run ever for IMAX and the first non-sequel movie to cross US$1 billion overseas since 2009.
The pic is a major contributor to Universal’s box-office dominance this year. The studio currently leads the pack with US$5 billion in earnings, becoming the first to cross US$4 billion worldwide, and these latest figures certainly bode well for the upcoming Oscars race, where the Best Picture hopeful is expected to shine.
Adapted from the eponymous 3,000-year-old poem that would lay the foundation for the hero’s journey narrative structure, The Odyssey follows Odysseus and his eternal, perilous voyage home after the Trojan War. Joining Matt Damon as Odysseus are Tom Holland (Telemachus), Anne Hathaway (Penelope), Robert Pattinson (Antinous), Lupita Nyong’o (Helen of Troy), Zendaya (Athena), Charlize Theron (Calypso), Elliot Page (Sinon), Jon Bernthal (Menelaus), John Leguizamo (Eumaeus), and more.
For Holland, Zendaya, and Bernthal, this isn’t the sole notch on their belts. All three star in Spider-Man: No Way Home, which now sits at US$2.4 billion globally following a slew of record-breaking performances, including surpassing the US$1 billion threshold in only six days, and sees Holland overtaking Zoe Saldaña as the top-grossing actor of all time.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
