Grand Rapids has become the only place in Michigan where audiences can watch Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey' exactly as it was filmed: on a true IMAX 70mm print threaded by hand inside a single projection booth. At Celebration Cinema North, projectionist Kevin Wolters has been running that booth, where the equipment includes an emergency panic button, while fans line up to catch a rare glimpse inside before showtime.
According to The Detroit News, reporter Adam Graham found a lobby map where visiting filmgoers pin their hometowns, with pins already representing all 50 states. The film arrived at the theater packed inside heavy metal containers stamped 'CT,' which staff say stands for 'Charlie's Tale.' On Monday, projectionist Logan Hutchinson could be seen cleaning a lens before threading the film onto the projector, with Tom Holland's face among the actors set to fill the giant screen.
One of Just 25 Screens in the Country
That kind of pilgrimage is only possible because of how rare this format has become. Celebration Cinema North is one of just 25 theaters in the United States, and roughly 41 worldwide, capable of projecting 'The Odyssey' in true 15/70mm IMAX film, fewer than 2.5% of the world's 1,800-plus IMAX-branded auditoriums, according to Forbes.
Getting the Grand Rapids booth ready took months of preparation. Seven staff members completed a full week of boot-camp-style training under an IMAX projection specialist who flew in from Canada, per WZZM-TV. Each 15/70mm print of the film stretches more than 600 kilometers of physical stock, and the station reports it takes roughly six hours to unpack, inspect, and assemble the reels onto horizontal platters before a screening can begin. To meet round-the-clock demand, the theater added showtimes as early as 2 a.m. and 7:45 a.m. and extended its IMAX 70mm run through September 16.
The First Movie Ever Shot Entirely on IMAX Film
The scramble for tickets traces back to a technical milestone. 'The Odyssey' is the first feature film ever captured entirely on 15/70mm IMAX cameras rather than switching between IMAX and standard formats for select scenes, as CBS News reports. Nolan's earlier films, including Oppenheimer and Dunkirk, shot only portions of their runtimes on IMAX film cameras.
Filming an entire narrative feature on famously loud IMAX cameras created its own obstacle for quiet dialogue scenes. Production teams worked with IMAX to build a custom noise-muffling housing, known as a 'blimp,' for a newly developed camera system called the 'Keighley,' according to Mashable.
A Yearlong Presale and a Record-Setting Box Office
Anticipation for this format began building long before the movie opened. Universal Pictures and IMAX launched ticket presales for 15/70mm screenings on July 17, 2025, a full year ahead of the film's 2026 release, in what The Guardian described as the longest advance ticket presale in modern cinema history. Opening-weekend showtimes at major 70mm venues worldwide reportedly sold out within hours of that presale launch.
The wait has paid off commercially. Within its first 12 days in theaters, 'The Odyssey' grossed more than $700 million worldwide, marking the strongest international opening of Nolan's career and surpassing figures for earlier hits like The Dark Knight Rises, Forbes reports.
Much of that $250 million budget went into practical filmmaking rather than digital effects. Production shot on location in the Mediterranean, Iceland, Scotland and Morocco, relying on Norse longships, wirework and puppetry for mythical creatures instead of CGI, according to 34th Street Magazine.
Why More Theaters Can't Simply Add 70mm Screens
That scarcity of screens isn't likely to change soon. IMAX Corporation cannot easily add new 70mm theaters because the original 50-year-old projector blueprints were incomplete or lost, leaving replacement parts unavailable and forcing technicians to salvage and recondition legacy projectors, per Moody on the Market.
Grand Rapids isn't the only city chasing this format. Hoodline has reported similar scenes playing out at Glendale's extended Alex Theatre run, another historic single-screen venue stretching its 70mm showtimes to meet demand. For now, Celebration Cinema North remains Michigan's only stop for the full analog experience, with viewers still traveling in and lining up for a look inside its booth.
