Christopher Nolan isn’t just dropping a new movie next year, he’s turning it into a year-long event. His upcoming Greek epic, The Odyssey, doesn’t hit movie theaters until July 17, 2026, but 70mm IMAX tickets are already going on sale this Thursday, July 17, 2025. That’s a full year before its release date. That means while the movie is still shooting in Europe, people are already booking their seats.
While most releases use the conventional promo format of releasing a teaser trailer, then a few posters, a few interviews and maybe an official trailer a bit later, The Odyssey seems to be flipping the script entirely. Showtimes are already live at Harkins Theaters and Cinemark in cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and D.C. The listed runtime is 2 hours and 40 minutes, which is almost certainly a placeholder considering the film hasn’t even been edited yet.
The last time something even remotely close to this happened was in 2012, when The Dark Knight Rises dropped 70mm midnight tickets six months in advance. One year, though? That’s new territory. And it’s all thanks to Nolan’s skyrocketing box office power after Oppenheimer raked in a staggering $975 million worldwide, with $183.6 million coming from IMAX alone. No wonder Universal wants you to lock in those seats early.
Nolan isn’t making a casual adaptation of Homer’s poem. He’s going all in, like he always does. The Odyssey will be the first feature film shot entirely on IMAX film cameras (technology that’s now lighter and easier to use), allowing him to capture every mythical monster and god in crisp 70mm glory. The budget reportedly tops $250 million, making it Nolan’s most expensive film yet, surpassing The Dark Knight Rises.
The cast is also stacked with a long… very long… very very long… list of amazing actors. Matt Damon plays Odysseus, Tom Holland is his son Telemachus, and Zendaya appears as Athena. Charlize Theron takes on the role of the witch goddess Circe, while leaked footage suggests Jon Bernthal is Menelaus, Lupita Nyong’o is Helen of Troy, and Anne Hathaway is Penelope. Expect appearances from Robert Pattinson, Benny Safdie, Elliot Page, and Mia Goth.
A 70-second teaser featuring Holland and Bernthal played exclusively ahead of Jurassic World Rebirth screenings in July 2025, only to leak online shortly after. Of course fans tore apart the footage for historical accuracy nitpicks, but that didn’t stop the hype.
I love Christopher Nolan, like most people who love movies do. But committing to a film a year in advance? If it were anyone else, it might be too much. But Nolan is a director you can bank on. The Odyssey is bound to be one of the most exciting film experiences of 2026.
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