'The Odyssey' Reaches $1 Billion at Worldwide Box Office

The Odyssey, by Christopher Nolan, has surpassed the $1 billion mark at the worldwide box office. With this achievement, the feature is on the verge of becoming the highest-grossing film of the director’s career, surpassing the $1.085 billion earned by The Dark Knight Rises (2012).

The film has grossed $429.7 million in the domestic market (U.S. and Canada) and $570.3 million in the rest of the world. The Odyssey has yet to open in major markets such as South Korea (where it arrives this week), China (August 14), and Japan (September 11), indicating that the final number could be even higher.

IMAX theaters continue to see near-overwhelming demand in markets such as Los Angeles and New York, with tickets sold for screenings through October. This weekend, the feature is sharing IMAX screens with Spider-Man: Brand New Day in the United States.

The film’s biggest international markets so far are the United Kingdom and Ireland ($75.3 million), France ($52.4 million), Italy ($46.9 million), Germany ($35.2 million), Australia ($29.8 million), Mexico ($28 million), Spain ($27.3 million), and India ($19.6 million).

Everything you need to know about The Odyssey

Directed by Christopher Nolan, the film is yet another adaptation of Homer’s classic heroic poem, a continuation of The Iliad that tells the story of Odysseus (Ulysses in some translations), who spends 10 years trying to return home to Ithaca after victory in the Trojan War. Enraged, Poseidon, god of the seas, does everything he can to keep him from returning to his wife, Penelope.

Matt Damon plays Odysseus. Anne Hathaway plays the character’s wife, Penelope. Meanwhile, Tom Holland plays Telemachus, Ulysses’ son, with Zendaya playing the goddess Athena, Charlize Theron as Calypso, Benny Safdie as Agamemnon, and Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra — or Klytemnestra —, Agamemnon’s wife. 

The Odyssey is now playing in theaters.