Imax CEO Rich Gelfond said Christopher Nolan’s upcoming The Odyssey is the first feature to shoot entirely on its cameras after the Oscar-winning British director issued a challenge.
“About a year before Christopher started filming The Odyssey he called me and said he wanted to make a whole film filmed with Imax cameras,” Gelfond told reporters at a lunch briefing in Cannes on Thursday, adding that Nolan said he would do so if the company could “resolve” a number of technological issues that had risen to the fore during production on Oppenheimer.
“We couldn’t do it [on Oppenheimer] for a lot of reasons.” The executive elaborated that the key stumbling blocks had been the time required to reload cameras and watch dailies on 70mm projectors, as well as sound issues.
“We have resolved these problems,” Gelfond added, “so this will be the first film filmed 100% on Imax cameras.”
Production on Universal Pictures’ Odyssey began in February in Morocco and will shoot in Greece, Italy, and Los Angeles. Matt Damon stars in the Homeric epic about Odysseus’s journey home from the Trojan War. The film reportedly costs $250m and will be released on July 17, 2026.
In a wide-ranging conversation, Gelfond addressed the subject of Donald Trump’s proposal to levy 100% tariffs on all films produced outside the United States, which the US president walked back the following day. Nonetheless, the matter has shaken the market and has been the talk of Cannes.
Yes Gelfond remained phlegmatic. “We never thought that was likely to take effect […] Tariffs apply to goods. [Film] is software.” He added that levies on parts were unlikely to have any material impact on his business as Imax does not import many parts.
The CEO also discussed Imax Corporation, Federation Studios, and Imago Production’s co-production Patrouille de France, the first Imax documentary not in the English language, which will debut in early 2026.
The film shot on Imax digital cameras and chronicles a year in the life of the aerobatics team of the French Air and Space Force from the selection process and training to its signature aerial displays. Part of the storyline will focus on the training of new crew after three pilots ejected from their planes in a mid-air crash during a rehearsal in March.
Pathé will distribute the film in France, and Gelfond said talks were ongoing with potential global partners in select territories. Federation Studios will handle non-theatrical distribution.
Imax just reported a record first quarter of $298m at the global box office, with ticket sales for Chinese smash Ne Zha 2 alone accounting for $165m for the highest-grossing Imax animated film, local-language film, and Chinese release of all time.
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