Christopher Nolan now has a new box-office peak: The Odyssey has become his highest-grossing film ever, putting it into the highest-grossing movies of all time discussion with a worldwide total of $1.1 billion. The film passed Dark Knight Rises after four weekends and reset Nolan’s personal ranking at the top.
That $1.1 billion haul includes $461.1 million domestically and $643.6 million overseas. Nolan’s films have now grossed over $7 billion worldwide, and the scale of this run pushes The Odyssey past the director’s previous best and into the kind of territory usually reserved for the year’s biggest theatrical releases.
Dark Knight Rises falls behind
Dark Knight Rises had held Nolan’s record with $1.085 billion worldwide, but The Odyssey moved ahead as of today. The new total matters because it changes the director’s internal box-office ladder, with Oppenheimer sitting as Universal’s fourth highest-grossing Nolan title at $975.8 million worldwide.
Jim Orr said, “Christopher Nolan has earned audiences’ trust by consistently delivering must-see theatrical events, and The Odyssey is him operating at the peak of his powers.” He also said, “Nolan’s epic film has been at the forefront of culture, with audiences seeking out premium formats and repeat viewings for this once-in-a-lifetime cinematic journey.”
Universal’s Nolan franchise
Universal now owns Nolan’s all-time record and his fourth highest grossing movie, a useful position for a studio that keeps turning his films into repeat business rather than one-off plays. Veronika Kwan Vandenberg said, “A singular filmmaker with the international following of Christopher Nolan is uniquely fit to adapt Homer’s ancient poem, which is one of the most influential and well-known stories in the world,” and added, “The Odyssey is a global epic that has resonated with audiences everywhere with its massive scope and uncompromising vision.”
The movie is also the second highest grossing R-rated movie worldwide and domestically, behind Deadpool & Wolverine, while still standing as the highest grossing R-rated movie of 2026 in North America and around the world. It is the fifth movie year-to-date to cross $1 billion, with Universal laying claim to three of the year-to-date billion-dollar movies.
Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson
The Odyssey is now the highest grossing movie of Matt Damon’s, Anne Hathaway’s, and Robert Pattinson’s careers globally. For the cast, that means the film has become the biggest commercial line on each resume, even as the broader year-to-date race still has Spider-Man: Brand New Day ahead at more than $1.26 billion and Toy Story 5 just behind with $1.09 billion.
How much farther The Odyssey can run at the box office is not answered yet, but the first four weekends already put Nolan back on top of his own filmography and above the $1 billion club that separates ordinary hits from franchise-scale business.
