While we are still a few weeks away from December 31, studios like to take this season to release previews for the biggest titles on the way in the coming calendar year. Hence, we've recently see the debut trailer for Toy Story 5, got an early look at The Devil Wears Prada 2, and been offered a first footage from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. If you're looking to get a good sneak peek of Christopher Nolan's upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey, however, it's going to take a bit of extra effort on your part: you should plan to spend some time in IMAX theaters in the coming days, as extended previews of the epic are on the way to large format screens.
According to Variety, a plan has been announced that will see first looks at The Odyssey attached to major upcoming releases/re-releases. Starting this coming Friday, December 12, 70mm screenings of Ryan Coogler's Sinners and Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another (which are returning to theaters) will include what is being described as a "nearly six-minute prologue" from Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Homer's most famous epic poem. The following weekend (a.k.a. starting December 19), the same prologue will play in front of IMAX screenings of James Cameron's Avatar: Fire And Ash.
The trade report additionally notes that the full-length trailer for The Odyssey will play with all screenings of Avatar 3 nationwide. The promotion follows the release of the teaser for the film in front of Jurassic World: Rebirth and Superman screenings this past summer. There is no mention of if/when footage will officially be made available online (regarding either the prologue or the trailer).
This promotional strategy, of course, is not a new tactic for Christopher Nolan movies. If one were to rewind their memory just short of 20 years, one might recall the opening sequence of The Dark Knight playing in front of IMAX screenings of I Am Legend, and similar previews have been crafted in the years since.
The film, which is the first ever to be shot exclusively with IMAX cameras, will star Matt Damon as the legendary Odysseus, who finds himself facing a great number of perils as he journeys home after the Trojan War. The outstanding ensemble cast also includes Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, Zendaya, Tom Holland, Jon Bernthal, Robert Pattinson, and Lupita Nyong'o.
The Odyssey is Christopher Nolan's first film since Oppenheimer won Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and this time around (as of now), his work won't have as much direct competition at the box office. While it will be arriving a week after the live-action remake of Moana and two weeks before the premiere of the anticipated Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it currently doesn't have any Barbie-sized competition on its July 17 release date.
