A new chapter is being added to Hollywood’s encyclopedia of marketing tactics, thanks to Universal and Christopher Nolan.
Exactly a year to the day of the release of Nolan’s The Odyssey, advance tickets are already on sale for Imax theaters who are equipped to screen the epic in 70mm film, the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s format of choice. The offer officially commenced Thursday at midnight EDT, according to Imax’s social feed.
By all accounts, it’s the first time in history that any tickets have gone on sale a year before a film’s release. One caveat: as of now, there are only a few dozen Imax screens in the U.S. that have the ability to play a title in 70mm film.
Nolan‘s take on the classic Greek myth — starring Matt Damon as the eternal hero Odysseus — is being shot entirely on Imax film cameras, a first for a commercial feature.
Until now, such a feat would have been impossible. But after the success of his Oscar-winning Oppenheimer, Nolan approached Imax about upgrading its cameras, including resolving issues with processing the cameras’ 70 mm film stock and the weight of the equipment.
Imax screens ponied up more than $190 million of Oppenheimer’s total global gross of $975.8 million, or 20 percent. “Chris called me up and said, ‘If you can figure out how to solve the problems, I will make [Odyssey] 100 percent in Imax.’ And that’s what we’re doing,” Imax CEO Rich Gelfond recalled when speaking at the company’s annual press lunch at the Cannes Film Festival this past May. “He forced us to rethink that side of our business, our film recorders, our film cameras.”
The new film cameras are reserved for Nolan for now, but after he wraps The Odyssey, Imax will begin renting them out to other directors. Nolan has always been a big fan of Imax cameras, which he used when shooting Dunkirk, Interstellar, The Dark Knight movies and Tenet.
The Odyssey has a net budget of $250 million, which will make it the most expensive film of Nolan’s career. The improbable blockbuster success of the atomic energy biopic Oppeneheimer proved yet again he’s one of the few directors who can reliably deliver an all-audience event film, and The Odyssey‘s epic scope and A-list cast should prove a major draw.
In addition to Damon, the film stars Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Jon Bernthal, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Mia Goth.
The classic story follows the king of Ithaca as he undertakes a long and perilous journey home to his wife Penelope following the Trojan War. His challenges are many as he spends years encountering a succession of mythical beings including the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, the enchantress Circe, and travels to the Underworld.
The first teaser-trailer for Nolan’s event pic debuted exclusively in theaters in front of Universal’s Jurassic World Rebirth, which opened over the Fourth of July corridor to huge numbers and continues to be a major draw.
Releasing the trailer so early is a bit unusual, considering that The Odyssey is still filming, but an all-audience tentpole such as Rebirth provided an opportunity Universal and Nolan’s team couldn’t pass up, even if the teaser was leaked online. Word of the advance ticket sales were also leaked when certain theater chains jumped the gun and posted notices that tickets would go on sale for the select 70mm screenings July 17.
