Well, that didn’t take long.
A full year before the release of Christopher Nolan‘s epic The Odyssey, tickets went on sale to see the Universal event pic film in Imax 70mm film — the filmmaker’s preferred format — at 25 or 26 locations over the July 17-19 weekend, in addition to Thursday afternoon screenings on July 16. Nolan‘s take on the classic Greek myth — starring Matt Damon as the eternal hero Odysseus — is being shot entirely on Imax film cameras, a first for a commercial feature.
Imax officially announced the special offer on its social feed at midnight Thursday ET. Within an hour, 95 percent of seats were snapped up, according to exhibition sources, repping about a total of $1.5 million in sales, despite a relatively small pool of seats. As the night and day unfolded, there were reports of tickets being resold on eBay and other sites for anywhere between $300 and $400, compared to an average retail price of $25-$28, said one source.
By all accounts, it’s the first time in history that tickets have gone on sale a year before a film’s opening. The title is a follow up to Nolan’s Oscar-winning Oppenheimer, which did huge business in Imax theaters.
There are roughly 16 Imax sites in the U.S. that are part of the offering as of now. The July 17-19 weekend and preview showings are already entirely sold out at AMC Lincoln Square 13 in New York City, the Universal Cinema AMC at CityWalk Hollywood and the Regal Irvine Spectrum in Orange County. Elsewhere in California, 77mm seats are almost gone at Imax locations in San Francisco, Dublin and Ontario.
Elsewhere across the country, other sell-out Imax cinemas are in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Buford, Georgia; Indianapolis, Indiana; Grand Rapids, Michigan; King of Prussia, Pennsylvania; and Dallas, Texas.
High-profile locations in Canada, where Imax is headquartered, quickly sold out, including the Cineplex Cinemas Mississauga Square and the Cineplex Cinemas Vaughan, both in Toronto.
Across the Atlantic, London’s famous BFI Imax is sold out, as is London’s Science Museum Imax auditorium. Seats are also almost gone in Imax’s theater in Melbourne, Australia, as well as a location in the Czech Republic.
Imax screens ponied up more than $190 million of Oppenheimer‘s total global gross of $975.8 million, or 20 percent. The Odyssey has a net budget of $250 million, which will make it the most expensive film of Nolan’s career. The improbable blockbuster success of the atomic energy biopic Oppenheimer proved yet again why Nolan is one of the few directors who can reliably deliver an all-audience event film, and The Odyssey‘s epic scope and A-list cast should prove a major draw.
In addition to Damon, the film stars Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Jon Bernthal, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Mia Goth.
The classic story follows the king of Ithaca as he undertakes a long and perilous journey home to his wife Penelope following the Trojan War. His challenges are many as he spends years encountering a succession of mythical beings including the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, the enchantress Circe, and travels to the Underworld.
The first teaser trailer for Nolan’s event pic debuted exclusively in theaters in front of Universal’s Jurassic World Rebirth, which opened over the Fourth of July corridor to huge numbers and continues to be a major draw.
Releasing the trailer so early is a bit unusual, considering that The Odyssey is still filming, but an all-audience tentpole such as Rebirth provided an opportunity Universal and Nolan’s team couldn’t pass up, even if the teaser was leaked online. Word of the advance ticket sales were also leaked when certain theater chains jumped the gun and posted notices that tickets would go on sale for the select 70mm screenings July 17.