Christopher Nolan Fans Will Stop at Nothing to See ‘The Odyssey’ in Imax 70mm, From Cross-Country Trips to Delaying Pregnancy
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- "The Odyssey" is the first film shot entirely with Imax cameras, and fans are crossing state lines, booking 2 a.m. screenings, and snapping up tickets months in advance for the limited Imax 70mm showings.
- Universal made the unprecedented move of putting Imax tickets on sale a year in advance, with most screenings selling out in hours; a second tranche released in June crashed ticketing sites and sent fans to AMC lobbies to reserve seats in person.
- Amber Connaghan, a 29-year-old tech editor in the California desert, told a friend she was delaying having a second child to avoid the due date conflicting with opening day, after buying her ticket more than a year ago and planning a three-hour drive to the nearest qualifying theater.
- Tim McHugh is flying from Pittsburgh to Los Angeles to see the film at Universal City Walk in Imax 70mm, citing a Ryan Coogler video about "Sinners" screenings as his inspiration and a high-school job lacing projectors as the origin of his film-format appreciation.
- Simon James, a 33-year-old New York City attorney, purchased 18 Imax 70mm tickets at AMC Lincoln Square spanning the film's first three weeks of release, saying he believes Nolan that the Imax experience exponentially elevates his films.
- Nolan's promotional campaigns have consistently championed the theatrical experience and Imax's large screens, and "The Odyssey" is expected to dominate the box office this weekend.
Why it matters: Universal's year-out Imax ticketing gambit effectively turned a nearly three-hour Homer adaptation into a premium-format cultural event, with limited 70mm inventory selling out in hours and fans treating screenings as bucket-list pilgrimages rather than casual outings. If the opening weekend delivers, the strategy validates Nolan's auteur-driven Imax advocacy and gives studios a roadmap for making premium formats a scarcity-driven sales tool rather than a passive upsell.
