Odysseus stole Luke Skywalker’s crown.
Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film “The Odyssey” has become the highest-grossing three-day box office at the BFI Imax theater in central London, beating out “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” with a gross of 219,867 pounds (approximately $300,000).
BFI Imax has the single largest screen in the UK, measuring 20 meters (65 feet) high and 26 meters (85 feet) wide. It seats 493 people and is one of only three Imax cinemas in the UK with the ability to show films in Imax 70mm, as Nolan intended.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi previously held the theatrical record with a three-day opening weekend gross of £216,454, followed by Nolan’s 2023 blockbuster Oppenheimer, which grossed £207,677 over a three-day opening weekend.
The Odyssey, which has already set a number of records, has also broken the theater’s single-advance sales record, selling 28,000 tickets in 24 hours from a year ago and grossing £750,000. This surpassed the pre-sale records of Dune: Part 2 and Oppenheimer, which earned £366,000 and £254,000 respectively in their first 24 hours.
To date, BFI Imax has attracted more than 82,000 attendees, resulting in 173 consecutive sold-out Imax 70mm screenings in eight weeks, and a total box office revenue of £2,169,882, making it the theater’s third-highest ever box office gross. The theater reports that fans have traveled from as far as Singapore, Los Angeles and Toronto to see the film.
“Across the BFI, our commitment to preserving and celebrating celluloid, along with the filmmakers who continue to champion the format, speaks to the enduring power of storytelling and the unique communal experience of watching movies on film,” said Madeleine Mallet, BFI Imax Program Manager. “The extraordinary demand for an Imax 70mm presentation of ‘The Odyssey,’ experienced as the filmmakers intended, is the ultimate proof of the appetite audiences have for the most authentic film.”
