Christopher Nolan's 'Odyssey' opens in Korea August 5 after topping box offices in 69 countries

Christopher Nolan's Odyssey opens in Korea on August 5. The director arrives four days earlier, alongside Matt Damon and Charlize Theron. A press conference happens August 3, followed by a red carpet at Times Square in Yeongdeungpo on August 4.

The film adapts Homer's Odysseia. Odysseus battles the wrath of the gods to return home after leading the Trojans to defeat. Runtime: 172 minutes. Nolan shot the entire film on 70mm IMAX—a first in Hollywood history. Only 41 IMAX theaters worldwide can fully present the format. Korea has none yet.

Matt Damon plays Odysseus. Anne Hathaway is his wife Penelope. Tom Holland plays his son Telemachus. Zendaya portrays the goddess Athena. Lupita Nyong'o takes the dual role of Helen and her twin. Elliot Page plays Sinon. Will Yun Lee, known from The Wolverine (2013), plays a soldier ensnared by the sirens. Charlize Theron is also visiting Korea with the cast, though her role wasn't specified in preview coverage.

Production built a 10.7-meter full-scale Trojan Horse and wooden battle ships capable of actual sailing.

The film opened in North America and Europe on July 16 and hit number one at box offices in 69 countries. It earned $303.97 million (approximately 448 billion won) worldwide in six days.

Korea's August release date was chosen to align with Nolan's visit. Korea isn't a market his team treats as secondary—Interstellar pulled 10 million admissions here and ranked second globally for Nolan films outside North America. A film official said, "Director Nolan showed willingness to come to Korea and directly introduce the film."

Nolan addressed casting controversy, particularly Nyong'o's role as Homer's "most beautiful woman." "(Such controversy in films with source material) inevitably occurs," he said, adding that debate before release is meaningless given that mythology-based works are inherently interpretive.