Millions see leaked bootleg copy of The Odyssey before it's quickly taken down
Leaks surrounding The Odyssey have surfaced, with reports stating millions have seen a high-quality bootleg of the film on social media.
Christopher Nolan's latest project is finally out in the wild and it's safe to say fans and critics are very impressed.
At the time of writing, The Odyssey sits at an impressive 94 percent Rotten Tomatoes score and has been equally loved by film junkies too.
There's no doubt that the movie has been a huge success and millions have gone to watch it in cinemas so far.
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But for those who haven't watched it in theatres yet, the full movie actually appeared on X over the weekend, with Variety first reporting that over 2.1 million watched the high-quality version of the film within two and a half hours.
By then, the account that posted the full movie was suspended and the version was ultimately taken down.
"The whole Odyssey film in an embedded video on Twitter. Crazy," one fan penned on X, while a second added: "Someone leaked The Odyssey movie in HD. I thought it was fake but it's true."
The Hollywood Reporter stated that a lower-quality version of the Box Office hit appeared on X on Sunday, but was removed two hours later after 50,000 people viewed it.
Following recent leaks, Universal Pictures said in a statement: "We became aware of the unauthorized posting of the film and immediately initiated takedown protocols. We take copyright infringement seriously and will pursue all appropriate remedies to protect our content and intellectual property rights."
The leak doesn't appear to have impacted the revenue The Odyssey is creating given the movie made a whopping $215 million in its second weekend.
This takes the total to $640 million worldwide following a blockbuster opening weekend.
Past a bootleg version of the film being uploaded on X, owner Elon Musk has expressed his dissatisfaction with Nolan's movie and has even offered to hand Mel Gibson $100 million to make his own version of The Odyssey.
Musk has criticised the cast choices in particular, writing: "Who specifically is the a****** who added DEI lies to Academy Awards eligibility instead of it just being about making the best movie?"
He has even accused the director of 'desecrating' the source material and claimed the choices amount to disrespect toward Greek culture.
Remarkably, Musk has even suggested his AI tool Grok Imagine, which has proved controversial, could make an 'historically accurate' version of the film.
The Odyssey: What you need to know
Written: Between 725 BC and 675 BC, so more than 2,500 years ago
Based on a true story? Mostly no (cyclops aren’t real). Historians are unsure if the Trojan War really happened
Who wrote The Odyssey? Homer, but historians don't know much about him and debate if he is a single person or a group of poets
How long is the movie? 2hrs, 52mins - best go to the toilet beforehand
How much did The Odyssey cost to make? A cool $250 million
The Odyssey's box office performance so far: $639 million globally after its first two weekends
How long did it take to film The Odyssey? Principal photography took 91 days, so 13 weeks
Where was the movie filmed? The Hellenic Film Commission explained Nolan and co filmed at several locations in the Peloponnese, including Nestor’s Cave, Voidokilia Beach and Almyrolaka Beach, which are all on the island of Pylos; Methoni Castle, at a port town of the same name in southwestern Greece; and Acrocorinth, a monolith overlooking the ancient city of Corinth.
According to Vogue, filming also took place in Morocco, in Marrakech, Tahanaoute, El Haouz, Essaouira and Ouarzazate. The cast and crew were also spotted on the Sicilian island of Favignana, while they filmed in Iceland for the underworld scenes.
Continuing their whistlestop tour of Europe, the Odyssey team also filmed in Scotland, along the Moray Firth Coast and at Findlater Castle and Culbin Forest.
The Odyssey in IMAX 70mm vs normal cinema screens: Helpfully, the film's website shows different versions of the trailer in six different formats, all with different aspect ratios. You can see the difference between IMAX 70mm (warning you now, there are only 25 IMAX 70mm screens in the whole of the US) and the standard 35mm format.
The Odyssey is in cinemas now.
Topics: Christopher Nolan, Film and TV
Callum Jones