Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ Trailer Breaks Records With 121 Million Views in 24 Hours
Universal Pictures
Nolan’s first post-Oscar epic doubles Oppenheimer’s debut numbers and cements The Odyssey as 2026’s most anticipated theatrical event.
Christopher Nolan is entering his post-Oppenheimer era at full velocity.
The first trailer for Nolan’s upcoming epic The Odyssey racked up 121.4 million views across social platforms in its first 24 hours, according to data provided by entertainment analytics firm WaveMetrix — more than doubling the debut performance of Oppenheimer, which pulled in roughly 50 million views over the same window.
The milestone positions The Odyssey as Universal Pictures’ biggest trailer launch of the year, surpassing even Wicked: For Good, and places it among the top ten most-watched trailers of 2025. More significantly, it signals that Nolan’s commercial and cultural reach has expanded rather than peaked following his Oscar sweep earlier this decade.
Universal Pictures
Unlike Oppenheimer, which carried the weight of historical drama, The Odyssey marks Nolan’s return to mythic scale — and audiences responded immediately. WaveMetrix reports that TikTok accounted for the largest share of views at 27%, followed closely by YouTube at 26%, Facebook at 21%, Instagram at 18%, and X at 10%. The platform spread underscores the trailer’s rare cross-generational appeal, cutting across cinephile-heavy spaces and mainstream social feeds alike.
The numbers also reflect a pivotal shift in Nolan’s career. The Odyssey is the director’s first trailer released after winning Best Director and Best Picture, transforming his name from prestige brand to global event status. Few filmmakers have ever carried that kind of momentum into their next project — and fewer still have done so with a $250 million, large-format epic.
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Adapted from Homer’s ancient Greek poem, The Odyssey stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the battle-worn king of Ithaca navigating a decade-long journey home after the Trojan War. The ensemble cast includes Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, and Jon Bernthal, among others, making it one of the most stacked lineups Nolan has assembled to date.
The trailer leans into elemental spectacle and existential stakes rather than exposition, teasing mythological encounters, brutal seafaring sequences, and the emotional toll of separation. Its final moments — centered on Odysseus’s uncertainty about whether he will ever return home — echo Nolan’s long-running fascination with time, memory, and human endurance.
Shot entirely on IMAX and IMAX 70mm film cameras, The Odyssey is being positioned as a theatrical-first experience in an era still reckoning with the future of cinemas. Universal has already begun selling tickets a full year in advance, a move reserved for only the most confidence-driven releases.
Set for release on July 17, 2026, The Odyssey arrives with expectations few films could survive — but if early audience engagement is any indication, Nolan’s next chapter may not just match Oppenheimer’s impact, but eclipse it.
