The historic run of Christohpher Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY in theatres has captured the cultural zeitgeist in the unique way it has resonated with audiences. Unlike many blockbusters of the 2010’s and 2020’s, this film’s promotional campaigns have largely focused on the filmmaking itself, rather than the film and its stars and storyline. Specifically, promotional spots have emphasized the importance of seeing the film “as Nolan intended,” which means in movie theatres on the biggest screens available. Art houses with 70-mm film projectors have ranked among the best-performing locations, with one notable example being the Alex Theatre.
The Alex Theatre is a one-screen cinema located in Glendale, California which has screened only repertory titles over the past 35 years, together with various live performances and musical acts. The historic theatre, which has been operating for over 100 years, had not played a first-run Hollywood release since the 1991 opening of TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY. However, in 2025 the Alex Theatre’s artistic director Miles Williams announced that his theatre would jump back into first run screenings with Nolan’s THE ODYSSEY.
Knowing the importance of screening Nolan movies in the best format possible, the theatre invested over $500,000 in theatre renovations, sourcing a 70-mm film projector, and hiring a dedicated film projectionist. The investment has paid off in a big way, with the Alex Theatre becoming the highest-grossing theatre for THE ODYSSEY on film format. Leaning into the current wave of success movie theatres have experienced in 2026, Williams also confirmed that later this year The Alex would also screen Denis Villeneuve’s DUNE: PART 3 and Greta Gerwig’s NARNIA for multi-week runs.
