Director Christopher Nolan's film "The Odyssey 2026" has surpassed a cumulative 9 million moviegoers 27 days after its release. It also set a new box-office record by drawing the most viewers among all films released domestically in IMAX theaters.
According to distributor Universal Pictures on the 31st, "The Odyssey 2026" surpassed a cumulative 9 million moviegoers this afternoon. It is the first foreign film to top 9 million viewers in Korea in about four years since "Avatar: The Way of Water," released in 2022.
Released on the 5th, "The Odyssey 2026" has held the No. 1 spot at the box office since opening. It topped 1 million viewers on day 4 and 2 million on day 6, then surpassed 8 million on day 24.
On the 29th, it overtook "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" to become the foreign film that drew the most viewers in Korea this year. If the current momentum continues, it is expected to reach 10 million viewers.
The only film to surpass 10 million viewers in Korea this year is "The King's Warden," with a cumulative 16,917,000 moviegoers. If "The Odyssey 2026" reaches 10 million, it will be the second film this year to hit the 10 million mark and the first foreign title to do so.
"The Odyssey 2026" follows Odysseus (played by Matt Damon), a hero of the Trojan War, on his journey home. It drew particular attention as the first film in history to be shot entirely with IMAX film cameras.
According to the Korean Film Council's integrated computer network and CGV, as of the 30th, about 941,000 people watched "The Odyssey 2026" in IMAX. It surpassed the previous record of 929,000 set by "Avatar: The Way of Water," ranking No. 1 all-time among IMAX audiences for films released domestically.
The share of IMAX viewers among the total audience is also high. As of the 30th, 10.4% of the cumulative 8,864,000 moviegoers watched the film in IMAX theaters. That is higher than past IMAX hits such as "Avatar: The Way of Water" (8.6%), "Avatar: Fire and Ash" (7.8%), and "Avengers: Endgame" (4.2%).