Kenneth Glad
An online dispute has grown around one of the year’s largest theatrical releases. Several commentators have challenged the publicly reported results without presenting proof of coordinated manipulation.
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey opened with an estimated $124.5 million in the United States and Canada and $139.6 million overseas, producing a worldwide total of $264.1 million. The result finished above pre-release forecasts of roughly $120 million domestically and $258 million globally.
Forbes described the total as the largest worldwide opening of Nolan’s career, ahead of the $249 million launch of The Dark Knight Rises. The Associated Press used a narrower comparison, saying it was his best domestic opening since that 2012 film.
The successful debut prompted a new round of allegations from right-wing social media users who had criticized the production before its release. Jezebel documented several posts disputing the film’s ticket sales, review scores and favorable reception after its opening weekend.
Ticket sales drew the first allegations
The X account MR. OBVIOUS alleged that theaters or the studio were purchasing seats to create the appearance of strong demand. The account claimed moviegoers had encountered nearly full seating charts while booking tickets, only to arrive at screenings with many empty places.
“The Odyssey is faking ticket sales by buying up theaters and seats,” the account wrote, describing the alleged activity as fraud. It also asserted that the film was already “$400 million in the hole.”
The post included a seating chart and screenshots of comments from users describing individual screenings. It did not include financial records, communications from theater operators or documentation connecting Universal Pictures to seat purchases. Reports of sparsely attended auditoriums also cannot establish sales patterns across the film’s domestic and international release.
The allegation circulated widely on X, even as industry reports indicated strong demand for premium screenings. According to the Associated Press, IMAX generated $81.4 million worldwide, its best weekend to date, with some theaters adding midnight and early-morning showings. Shot entirely with IMAX cameras, the film earned more than one-fifth of its global opening from premium formats, though only 41 venues worldwide could screen the full 70 millimeter version.
Review scores became another point of dispute
The discussion soon expanded from theater attendance to audience ratings.
In another post, author and online commentator Kevin Bass claimed that audiences had given the movie a 56 percent rating rather than the much higher figure displayed by Rotten Tomatoes.
“I was right. Again,” Bass wrote. “The Rotten Tomatoes reviews are rigged. Now there is proof.”
The post did not identify the origin of the 56 percent figure or explain how it had been calculated. Jezebel cites a 94 percent critics score based on 426 reviews and a 97 percent audience score from more than 10,000 ratings. The film also held an 8.5 rating on IMDb. Those figures remain subject to change as additional responses are submitted.
Other users proposed explanations unrelated to sales or review aggregation. An account named Henry wrote that the movie was intended “to pacify people, make them okay with civilization collapsing.”
The same post continued: “Also, Nolan has sacrificed to Baal, methinks.”
No supporting information accompanied the religious allegation. It appeared as a personal conclusion after the user said he had watched the film the previous day.
The reaction followed months of criticism focused particularly on Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o and actor Elliot Page. Some people objected to their casting and predicted that audiences would reject the film, only for its opening figures to exceed those expectations.
Ben Shapiro’s praise prompted further suspicion
Conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro complicated the argument by praising The Odyssey and calling it a “masterpiece.” Rather than treating his reaction as a disagreement among conservative viewers, at least one user interpreted it as another reason to distrust the film.
“After seeing Ben Shapiro say the movie was good I’m convinced Israel is involved in this movie,” the verified KillerPriest account wrote. “I never really was that guy, but that really did it for me.”
Shapiro’s approval showed that opposition to the movie was not uniform on the political right. His response also undermined the expectation that conservative commentators would necessarily reject it because of casting disputes or arguments about representation.
The theories changed as the available information changed. Predictions of a commercial failure were followed by accusations about purchased seats, false ratings and political influence once the movie performed well. Across the posts documented by Jezebel, none showed any evidence that the reported sales or audience response had been manufactured.
The verified commercial figures offer a more direct account of the opening: A filmmaker with an established audience released a heavily promoted spectacle featuring major stars, while unusually strong demand for IMAX and other premium formats increased ticket revenue. Whatever the movie’s longer-term performance may be, its first weekend was supported by record sales across both domestic and overseas markets, placing it as the 25th best worldwide opening weekend for a movie ever.
Sources: Jezebel; Associated Press
