General views of the TCL Chinese Theatre during opening weekend for the Christopher Nolan film, "The Odyssey" in Imax on July 18, 2026, in Hollywood, California.

AaronP | Bauer-Griffin | Gc Images | Getty Images

For Mike Rohlfing to see "The Odyssey" in theaters this week, the 39-year-old marketer set off on a hero's journey of his own.

Rohlfing, along with his wife and three kids, drove approximately 900 miles round trip by minivan from their home in St. Louis, Missouri, to Grand Rapids, Michigan. Their destination: One of the select movie theaters offering Imax 70-millimeter screenings for director Christopher Nolan's adaptation of the epic poem.

"It's an incredible format," Rohlfing told CNBC. "It was definitely worth it to me to travel such a long distance."

Rohlfing isn't the only one going out of his way to experience the Universal film in this hard-to-find style.

A-list actors like Zendaya and Anne Hathaway may line the cast list, but the breakout performance is coming from the large-scale, analog viewing experience beloved by Nolan and his fans. Exclusive data shared with CNBC shows how significantly the film revved up interest for higher-priced Imax 70 mm screenings.

It's part of a class of higher-end screening types known as "premium large formats," or PLFs. An adult Imax 70 mm ticket for opening weekend ran the typical attendee $27.77, according to EntTelligence. That's 81% more expensive than the average cost of admission across formats.

"Imax 70-millimeter film has become among the hottest tickets in the world," Imax CEO Richard Gelfond said Thursday on a conference call with analysts. "Fans are flying across countries, if not continents, to experience 'The Odyssey' and Imax 70 millimeter."

Mike Rohlfing in the projection room of an Imax 70 mm theater in Michigan.

Courtesy: Mike Rohlfing

'Historic' demand

During opening weekend, Gelfond reported that an average screen equipped for 70 mm brought in a "massive" box-office haul of $153,000. Imax 70 mm screenings of "The Odyssey" will run for months, Gelfond said.

But Imax can't quickly multiply screening counts to meet the surge of interest. That's because only a small share of total Imax theaters are big enough and equipped with the high-cost machinery necessary to project the gigantic Mornirolls of 70 mm film. Imax lists 25 theaters across the U.S. and an additional 16 internationally with its 70 mm presentations of "The Odyssey."

"We could have more of them and we're exploring ways to do that, but in a way, it's like a Rolls-Royce," Gelfond said of Imax 70 mm auditoriums. "There are a finite number of locations that really can support the economics of it."

Also, Nolan's film is the first feature film shot entirely with Imax 70 mm cameras. Other directors have used the format for smaller, often action-packed scenes, within more conventionally filmed features.

Even with limited screens, Cinemark told CNBC that demand for its Imax 70 mm showings in states including Colorado and Texas is "exceptionally strong." Regal said the almost-three-hour picture became the chain's top Imax 70 mm-displayed movie.

The Imax 70 mm theater within the Indiana State Museum — the only film house running this format in the Hoosier State — added an additional one-week run in August due to "historic" demand.

More than half of audience members on the first days of showings traveled at least 50 miles, according to Neale Johantgen, the Indiana theater's manager. His team welcomed visitors from more than 20 states and fielded requests from moviegoers attempting to score tickets from places as far-flung as Switzerland.

"Demand's never been higher," Johantgen said. "It's awesome."

The Regal Irvine Spectrum has reopened with a new high-tech look including the dramatic hallway lighting leading to the Imax theater on Sept. 17, 2020, in Irvine, California.

Gina Ferazzi | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images

The 'crème de la crème'

Given the limited availability, securing an Imax 70 mm ticket has become a battle in itself. Theaters are running screenings around the clock, but even the showtimes in the early hours of the morning are booking out. Some theaters put Imax 70 mm tickets on sale a year in advance.

Morgan Bernados couldn't get through the queue for her local theater in the San Francisco Bay Area when a batch of seats dropped a few months ago. After the 27-year-old nonprofit worker switched focus to an Imax 70 mm screen located roughly 90 minutes away, she was able to snag tickets for a Monday night showing.

"It felt like buying concert tickets," said Bernados, who compared the process to the frenzy around Taylor Swift's Eras Tour. "There definitely is a 'FOMO' element."

Ashton Jones was only able to secure seats in a 3 a.m. showtime for the sole Imax 70 mm theater in his home state of Georgia. The 26-year-old information technology administrator consumed a Red Bull energy drink around the film's halfway mark to stay alert. After the closing credits rolled and Jones made the approximately hourlong drive home, it was nearly time to clock in for his workday.

"It was fun," Jones said. "But I was hurting the next day."

Imax's stock outperformed peers last year, with investors viewing the company's premium offerings as a key factor for getting consumers to see movies in theaters. Wall Street anticipates more upside ahead: Most analysts have a buy rating and the average price target suggests shares can add another 12% over the next year, according to LSEG.

Imax blew past analysts' earnings expectations when reporting second-quarter earnings on Thursday, resulting in one of the stock's biggest single-session gains in recent history. The Canada-based firm also reported a year-over-year increase in signings and installations within its network.

"They really create an experience that you can't replicate at home," said Steve Frankel, senior research analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, a Wall Street firm. "The 70-millimeter experience is really the crème de la crème."

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Imax over the last 5 years

How Imax 70 mm became part of the buzz

Nolan and the movie's stars have encouraged viewers to see the blockbuster in Imax 70 mm. But box-office trackers also credit social media users and young moviegoers with playing a leading role in creating buzz for this type of screening for "The Odyssey."

Conversation volume in social and news media around the Imax 70 mm format approximately doubled in the five-day stretch beginning July 17, according to data from Meltwater analyzed exclusively for CNBC. Overall sentiment around the topic grew increasingly positive in that period, the monitoring firm said.

L to R: Director Christopher Nolan with Cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema, ASC on set of his film THE ODYSSEY, written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan.

Courtesy: Melinda Sue Gordon | Universal Studios

Relative Google search volume for "Imax 70 mm" is forecasted to set fresh records this month, the company's data shows. It last hit new highs around Nolan's release of "Oppenheimer," the Oscar winner for Best Picture, in the summer of 2023.

Imax 70 mm has "really captured the attention of more than just die-hard cinema fans," said Shawn Robbins, founder of Box Office Theory and director of analytics at Fandango, who added that it has started "to kind of spread out into the pop-culture lexicon."

Robbins said he expects "The Odyssey" to return to Imax 70 mm theaters during slower periods in the fall release calendar. He said the excitement could drive interest for upcoming movies being presented in the same format like Warner Bros. Discovery's "Dune: Part Three," due out in December.

Decision time

For consumers like Alexandria Kinsey, comparing viewing formats for "The Odyssey" resulted in an education in theater jargon. The Washington-area resident said she used TikTok to research the difference between screening types with names such as "XL" and "Dolby Cinema." Viewings publicized as simply being in "Imax" or "70 mm" are different from the true Imax 70 mm experience, she discovered.

"I was like, 'What does all of this mean?'" Kinsey said. "It's overwhelming."

Kinsey ultimately settled on a Dolby Cinema showing but hopes to see the film again in Imax down the road. While the Kinsey said events like concerts have felt increasingly expensive amid the postpandemic "funflation" phenomenon, the 28-year-old found premium-format movies to be an affordable luxury that fits into her budget.

Matt Damon stars as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey."

Universal

Rohlfing, the St. Louis-based marketer, has become a disciple of Imax 70 mm among friends and on social media.

When packing the car, Rohlfing made sure there was room for the special Imax collectible popcorn bucket released in conjunction with "The Odyssey." Imax said it sold more than 10,000 of the carriers, with some drops of the item selling out within minutes.

Rohlfing has made a habit of cautioning friends to ensure Imax screenings project film. If the theaters use digital rather than analog, Rohlfing said viewers end up with an experience that he jokingly describes as "lie-max."

"I'm somewhat notorious for being an Imax purist," Rohlfing said.

Disclosure: Versant Media is the parent company of CNBC and Fandango.

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