Never mind the poisonous noise from certain quarters about the nontraditional casting of the actors in filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. All the racism and transphobia and the whining about supposed DEI hires had little to no impact on the box office, as the sprawling adaptation of Homer’s epic, classical Greek poem earned $264.1 million worldwide in its theatrical debut over the weekend. Already surpassing its considerable $250 million production costs, The Odyssey is projected to easily hit $625 million, which would cover all expenses related to the making, promotion, and distribution of the film. That’s the best news the movie business has received thus far in a summer of big-budget bombs, including Moana, Masters of the Universe, and Supergirl, although there will likely be more relief for Hollywood in a couple of weeks, thanks to a certain super-powered webslinger.
On July 31, Spider-Man: Brand New Day will premiere in U.S. theaters. It’s the fourth movie to feature Tom Holland in the role of the wall-crawling, wisecracking Marvel Comics superhero and the latest collaboration between Marvel and Sony as part of the latter studio’s long-running deal for the rights to the character. Sony’s involvement aside, it will reconnect Holland’s depiction of Spidey and his alter ego Peter Parker to the prodigious, ever-evolving Marvel Cinematic Universe with significant appearances by Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce “Hulk” Banner and Jon Bernthal’s Frank “Punisher” Castle and a number of other heroes and villains from previous MCU films and TV shows. With the unflagging popularity of Spider-Man and anticipation for the Dec. 18 opening of Marvel’s purportedly game-changing Avengers: Doomsday movie, it’s no wonder that Spider-Man: Brand New Day is expected to make $550 million in global revenue during the first few days of its run and garner more than $1 billion in its final total.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is almost assured success with its built-in fan base and widespread curiosity about Spidey’s latest interactions with his MCU comrades. One can assume that fallout from the previous Spider-Man installment, No Way Home, will be addressed, including issues in Peter’s personal life. Trailers have revealed that changes in his powers become a major issue as he battles ninjas and super-criminals while still trying to live a normal life. Since reviewers have not yet seen the finished product, it’s unclear if the many moving parts will mesh or if the story will have any impact on the plot of Avengers: Doomsday. But Spider-Man: Brand New Day has the advantage of being directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, who previously worked on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings for Marvel. Cretton’s familiarity with the territory should be an asset. In any event, advance sales and other metrics used by industry analysts suggest that the financial gains will be substantial.
‘The Odyssey’ triumphs against the odds
Regarding The Odyssey, Nolan is a master of sweeping spectacle, as seen in such diverse triumphs as Oppenheimer, Dunkirk, The Dark Knight, Inception, and Interstellar. His decision to shoot The Odyssey in the immersive 70 mm IMAX format brought the proper scope and splendor to the epic of Odysseus, warrior and king of Ithaca, and his two-decade journey back home to his wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachus, after the Trojan War. Any quibbles with Nolan’s script — the aspects of Homer’s tale that were emphasized, altered, or left out, the occasional use of modern lingo — are forgotten in the salvo of astonishing battle sequences, imposing creatures of mythology, unsettling interludes of sorcerous madness, and moving moments of intimacy, accompanied by a thrilling score from composer Ludwig Goransson. It’s almost three hours long, which sounds daunting, but The Odyssey is enthralling from beginning to end.
The hordes of naysayers on social media can bray all they like about casting choices, and it won’t change the fact that the actors in The Odyssey deliver powerful performances — swaggering, crafty, and sometimes tender — throughout the movie. Matt Damon is superb as the noble, tormented Odysseus, desperate to return to Ithaca and his family and in danger of losing his soul as the years mount up; and Anne Hathaway is magnificent as the resolute Penelope, fending off a constant barrage of suitors in the absence of Odysseus. The rest of the ensemble is up to the task, with Tom Holland’s often abused Telemachus, John Leguizamo’s wise and steadfast Eumaeus, and Samantha Morton’s witchy Circe among the standouts.
Blockbusters falter
While The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day are poised to cash in, there were myriad reasons why would-be summer blockbusters Moana, Masters of the Universe, and Supergirl tanked. In the case of Moana ($250 million budget, $138 million box office gross), there was no reason to do a live-action version of a beloved, successful 10-year-old cartoon about a plucky Polynesian girl and a selfish, arrogant demigod on a quest, especially when the script is a beat-for-beat copy of the first film and the performers are primarily plopped down in the middle of CGI-animated settings to listless effect.
Masters of the Universe ($170 million budget, $110 million box office gross) tried to revive a fantasy/sword and sorcery franchise that originated as a line of action figures, spawned cartoon and live action projects, and was apparently past its prime — if the tepid reaction to this smirky action comedy was any indication. And though Supergirl ($170 million budget, $121 million box office gross) was graced by a really good lead turn by Milly Alcock as Superman’s traumatized, self-destructive cousin, some amusing dialogue, and a couple of cool punch-ups, an army of misogynistic online haters didn’t help it overcome its middling antagonist and imperfect adaptation of a well-regarded DC Comics graphic novel about the Girl of Steel.
Even The Mandalorian and Grogu, the Star Wars spin-off developed from a popular TV series about a space-faring mercenary and his adopted alien protégé, and Disclosure Day, Steven Spielberg’s science-fiction offering about alien encounters, have fallen short of breaking even. Other than the impressive profits made by the low-budget horror movies Obsession and Backrooms, this summer was a total write-off for the studios until Odysseus came along. Now, it’s on Spider-Man to keep filling the coffers until fall arrives and awards season brings out the big guns.
The Odyssey is currently in theaters; Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens in theaters on July 31.
