One of the most anticipated film releases of the year has made a historic splash at the global box office, as Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s ancient epic *The Odyssey* has sailed straight to the top of North American weekend box office rankings, delivering the strongest opening for any live-action movie in 2024. Industry data published Sunday confirms the epic feature pulled in $124.5 million in ticket sales across North America during its debut three-day weekend, far outpacing pre-release projections that predicted an opening haul of less than $100 million.
Produced by Nolan’s longtime collaborator and wife Emma Thomas and distributed by Universal Pictures, the film boasts a star-studded ensemble cast headlined by A-list actors Matt Damon and Anne Hathaway. It also earned an additional $139 million from international theaters over the opening weekend, bringing its total global launch revenue to $263.5 million — a figure that already covers the project’s full reported $250 million production budget in just its first three days on screens.
A groundbreaking creative project, *The Odyssey* marks the first feature film ever to be shot entirely on IMAX 70mm film stock. For his retelling of Homer’s 3,000-year-old poem, Nolan leaned into traditional analog filmmaking techniques to reimagine the classic story of hero Odysseus, who battles countless mythic and natural obstacles on his decade-long journey home following the end of the Trojan War.
Veteran entertainment industry analyst David A. Gross highlighted the unique appeal of Nolan’s work in a commentary on the opening weekend results, noting: “Nolan is the only filmmaker working today who could take an ancient story like this, attract a cast as sprawling and accomplished as this, and make it a pop culture event.”
The rest of the top five on the North American weekend box office charts saw holdover titles from major studios maintain solid traction with audiences. Disney’s animated hit *Moana* held steady in second place, adding $19 million in its second weekend of release to push its North American total to $82 million and global cumulative sales to $178 million. Universal’s *Minions & Monsters* followed closely behind in third, earning $14.8 million domestically to bring its three-week global total to nearly $357.6 million. Disney’s *Toy Story 5* dropped one spot to fourth in its fifth weekend on screens, pulling in an estimated $13 million domestically for a global total approaching $958 million. Warner Bros.’ horror release *Evil Dead Burn* rounded out the top five with a $5 million domestic haul, pushing its two-week global total to $51 million and domestic total to more than $24 million.
The remaining positions in the weekend’s top 10 highest-grossing films were filled by: *The Invite* at $3.9 million, *Young Washington* at $3.7 million, *Obsession* at $2.5 million, *Supergirl* at $1.5 million, and *Disclosure Day* at $1.45 million.