The Odyssey has surpassed Deadpool & Wolverine to become the highest-grossing R-rated movie worldwide.
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has become the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time, surpassing the worldwide box-office record previously held by Deadpool & Wolverine.
Current reporting places The Odyssey at approximately $1.34 billion worldwide. That moves it beyond the $1,338,073,645 earned by Deadpool & Wolverine during its 2024 theatrical run.
The exact post-record total has not yet appeared across the major box-office trackers, but the record itself has been publicly acknowledged. Ryan Reynolds congratulated the cast and crew of The Odyssey after the film passed the Marvel release.
The Odyssey Passes Deadpool & Wolverine Worldwide
Deadpool & Wolverine became the highest-grossing R-rated movie in 2024 when it passed Joker. Its final worldwide total of $1.338 billion established a record that appeared difficult to reach without another major superhero event.
The Odyssey has now passed that mark approximately one month after opening in theaters.
The current worldwide ranking is:
- The Odyssey — approximately $1.34 billion
- Deadpool & Wolverine — $1.338 billion
- Joker — approximately $1.079 billion
- Oppenheimer — approximately $983 million
Unlike the movie it replaced, The Odyssey is not a superhero sequel or franchise crossover. It is an R-rated, nearly three-hour adaptation of Homer’s ancient epic, built around Nolan’s reputation and the promise of a large-format theatrical experience.
That makes the record especially unusual. The movie had a recognizable story, a major ensemble cast and an enormous marketing campaign, but it still had to convince a worldwide audience to embrace a historical epic with an R rating.
How The Odyssey Reached $1.34 Billion
The record began with a $264.1 million worldwide opening, including $124.5 million from the United States and Canada. That was the biggest global debut of Christopher Nolan’s career.
The film continued to hold well after its opening weekend rather than depending entirely on its initial rush. Its fifth domestic weekend earned approximately $23.6 million, declining only 26% from the previous weekend. That level of stability kept adding meaningful revenue even after Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrived in theaters.
International markets supplied the larger share of the worldwide total. China contributed another major wave of ticket sales in August, while Japan is still scheduled to open the film on September 11.
The large-format strategy also played a central role. The Odyssey became the highest-grossing IMAX release ever earlier in its run, passing Avatar. Premium-format tickets gave the movie a higher average ticket price while Nolan’s emphasis on seeing the film theatrically helped sustain demand.
By the time The Odyssey approached the R-rated record, it was adding revenue from domestic holdovers, international markets and premium screens simultaneously.
The Odyssey Is Christopher Nolan’s Biggest Movie
The R-rated record is only one of several box-office milestones the movie has reached.
The Odyssey previously passed The Dark Knight Rises, which earned approximately $1.08 billion, to become the highest-grossing movie of Nolan’s career. It also moved well beyond Oppenheimer, his previous R-rated success.
Nolan’s recent theatrical run now includes two of the four highest-grossing R-rated movies ever made:
- The Odyssey at approximately $1.34 billion
- Oppenheimer at approximately $983 million
The two films reached that level without the built-in continuity of a superhero universe. Their performance strengthens Nolan’s position as one of the few filmmakers whose name alone can function as a worldwide theatrical brand.
Ryan Reynolds Acknowledges the Record
The record received an unusually direct handoff from the star of the movie that previously held it.
Ryan Reynolds publicly congratulated the cast and crew of The Odyssey for becoming the highest-grossing R-rated movie ever. He accompanied the message with a joke about the Honda Odyssey, referencing the minivan used during the extended fight sequence in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Reynolds’ acknowledgment provides public confirmation that The Odyssey has passed the previous record even though some box-office databases are still displaying pre-crossing totals.
The last exact figure reported before the record was confirmed was $1,334,752,765. Because that number remains below the Deadpool & Wolverine benchmark, the safest current description is that The Odyssey has earned approximately $1.34 billion worldwide. The exact winning margin can be added once Universal or the major box-office trackers publish the updated total.
What Is the Next Box-Office Milestone for The Odyssey?
The next clear target is $1.4 billion worldwide.
Based on the rounded $1.34 billion total, the film needs approximately $60 million more to reach that mark. China holdovers and the September 11 Japanese opening give it additional runway, although its exact path will depend on how quickly international grosses decline over the next several weeks.
Reaching $1.4 billion would extend the R-rated record and move The Odyssey further up the list of the highest-grossing movies ever made.
For now, the confirmed achievement is already historic. The Odyssey has passed Deadpool & Wolverine, become the biggest R-rated movie in worldwide box-office history and established a new career high for Christopher Nolan.
You can also read how The Odyssey initially crossed $1 billion worldwide and how it helped the 2026 summer box office pass $4 billion domestically.
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