Christopher Nolan’s Next Movie Is His Best Chance At Breaking A 13-Year-Old Dark Knight Trilogy Record

The Odyssey premieres in 2026, and will be the new cinematic epic helmed by Christopher Nolan. With a number of promising updates about the movie at such an early stage, Nolan’s upcoming project could be his best chance at breaking The Dark Knight Rises‘ 13-year-old box office record. The Odyssey will be an adaptation of the renowned poem by Homer, centering around the Greek hero, Odysseus. The director is set to collaborate with Universal once again, after the studio’s work on the acclaimed project secured Oppenheimer almost one billion dollars at the box office.

Christopher Nolan has a proven track record of box office success, with many of his films surpassing the $500 million mark. However, the director’s Dark Knight trilogy is unmatched in terms of worldwide gross — though some projects have come very close. The Odyssey will live up to Nolan’s post-Oppenheimer promise and will be his first large-scale movie after his previous momentous blockbuster. Taking into consideration Nolan’s talent for visuals that are miraculously enhanced for IMAX screens, as well as the source material, The Odyssey has the potential to be Nolan’s most ambitious film yet.

The Odyssey Has A Good Chance Of Beating The Dark Knight Rises As Nolan’s Highest-Grossing Movie

The Odyssey Is Already Gearing Up To Be The Biggest Release Of 2026

As it stands, The Dark Knight Rises is Christopher Nolan’s highest-grossing movie. While its record will be difficult to beat, Nolan’s upcoming epic, The Odyssey, will stand a good chance of surpassing its worldwide box office total. The upcoming film will focus on the retelling of a Greek legend, in which the King of Ithaca returns home after the Trojan War. The enticing plot is assisted by the outstanding confirmed cast, which includes returning star, Matt Damon, as well as Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, and Lupita Nyong’o, to name a few.

These elements suggest strong blockbuster potential. More importantly, Nolan’s upcoming project will be even more sought after following his previous movie, Oppenheimer. Nolan’s 2023 masterpiece swept the Academy Awards in 2024, taking home the win for each leading category. It is rather easy to see how this may benefit The Odyssey‘s performance, meaning audiences can feel optimistic that The Odyssey may easily beat The Dark Knight Rises’ record, as there is a lot of anticipation to see if Nolan can deliver another film to match the success of his last project.

Only Two Christopher Nolan Movies Have Grossed Over A Billion At The Box Office

The Dark Knight Franchise Is Christopher Nolan’s Only Billion Box Office Hits

While Christopher Nolan has had many high-grossing movies, his entry into the DC universe with The Dark Knight and later, The Dark Knight Rises, are the only projects to surpass one billion dollars at the box office. The Dark Knight took the world by storm during its release and has had a permanent impact on not only the franchise but also depictions of Batman and the Joker. This, combined with the immensely gripping plot, played a significant role in propelling the sequel, The Dark Knight Rises, to new heights — making it one of the highest-grossing films in history.

Although The Dark Knight is generally held in higher regard by audiences, the sequel performed even better at the box office, earning $8,109,374.1 more than its predecessor. The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises have the unique advantage of being part of the only franchise in Christopher Nolan’s filmography, which highlights the director’s ability to bring a story to a satisfying conclusion over time. Not to mention, both projects center around the eternally popular Batman, which inevitably helped push The Dark Knight franchise past the one billion dollar mark.

Oppenheimer’s Success Confirmed Nolan Can Be A Box Office Titan Outside Of Batman

Oppenheimer Came Close To Beating The Dark Knight At The Box Office

Christopher Nolan’s latest project, Oppenheimer, was the biggest release of 2023, right alongside Greta Gerwig’s Barbie. Of course, the pop culture phenomenon “Barbenheimer” elevated the film massively, but its critical and commercial success is largely due to Nolan’s skill as a director — particularly his use of stunning visuals to tell a gripping story. For many years, it has been speculated whether any Nolan movie could compete against the Batman franchise, but Oppenheimer definitively proved otherwise. The movie grossed a remarkable $976.8 million at the box office, tantalizingly close to becoming a billion-dollar movie.

That is not to say Oppenheimer is the only film in Nolan’s history to see such momentous success. The director’s mind-bending thriller from 2010, Inception, as well as his drama-thriller set in space, Interstellar, both made huge impressions at the box office. However, Oppenheimer beat the opening weekends of these two previous hits by a rather high margin. Oppenheimer‘s near miss of the billion-dollar mark only serves to highlight Nolan has more to offer outside his Batman trilogy, especially when compared to Nolan’s other blockbuster films — standing The Odyssey in good stead to potentially exceed the record set by The Dark Knight trilogy.

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The Odyssey

Release Date

July 17, 2026