Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has stormed to the top of the global box office, defying mounting criticism from MAGA.
The 21st-century adaptation of Homer’s epic drew in $264 million in its opening weekend worldwide, Universal Pictures has disclosed. The blockbuster debuted even stronger than Nolan’s Oppenheimer, the 2023 hit that ended up making just under $1 billion. Of Nolan’s films, only The Dark Knight Rises made more in the first weekend following its release: in 2012, the Batman film opened with $249 million, or what would be $362 million today.
Nolan’s latest feat was expected to reach $100 million in its debut in North America, as projected by Universal.
It smashed past that target, grossing $124.5 million, making it the third-largest opening of the year in North America. Two family-friendly films are in the lead, with Toy Story 5 making $159 million and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie scoring $131 million in their opening weekends. Given that The Odyssey is rated R, the numbers are all the more impressive, box office experts are pointing out.
The film has been lauded by critics. The three-hour-long visual and narrative spectacular, the first film to be shot entirely in IMAX, boasts a star-studded cast and heart-wrenching thematic roots.
Before its release, publications alluded to Nolan’s cinematic achievement, calling the film “astonishing,” “dizzying,” and “packed with career-best work.” Then, the full reviews rolled in. As the Daily Beast’s Nick Schager wrote, “Modern mainstream films don’t come more daring, mammoth, and accomplished than Nolan’s latest, whose outsized majesty reaffirms him as the medium’s peerless blockbuster artist.”
But the commercial and critical success of The Odyssey is sure to anger members of the MAGA movement, who have preemptively criticized the film for everything from its cast to its interpretation of the legendary epic.
Their main criticism? That Nolan’s take on the Ancient Greek poem was too “woke.” For months, MAGA melted down over the Oscar-winning director’s casting choices, criticizing Nolan’s decision to cast Lupita N’yongo as Helen of Troy and Elliot Page as Achilles.
The differences between the source material and its latest cinematic interpretation sparked further outrage. Conservative critics were incensed by the film’s portrayal of its titular character, Odysseus, who is internally tortured by guilt over his use of the Trojan Horse. The intensity of this guilt keeps Odysseus, played by a spectacular Matt Damon, away from home, unable to face his family, his people, and, more than anyone, himself. Right-wing critics were infuriated by this character arc, a departure from the portrayal they desired: that of a war hero unburdened by his pride.
But it is this depiction that ultimately won over audiences. Beyond conquering the box office, the film has already dominated award-season predictions and is being hailed as the “movie event of the year.”
