Universal hits The Odyssey leak with takedown protocols
Universal says it initiated takedown protocols after a high-quality copy of Christopher Nolan’s film appeared on X and drew millions of views.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Universal moved fast after The Odyssey leak surfaced on X over the weekend, with the studio saying it began takedown protocols after an unauthorized copy of Christopher Nolan’s film appeared online.
Deadline reported that the version posted to X was high quality and had reportedly racked up millions of views before Universal responded. The studio said in a statement to Deadline that it was aware of the unauthorized posting and had started the removal process.
Universal also said it treats copyright infringement seriously and would use appropriate remedies to protect its content and intellectual property rights.
What happened with The Odyssey leak?
A high-quality version of The Odyssey appeared on X during the film’s theatrical run, according to Deadline. By Sunday morning, Deadline reported that most, if not all, of the copies seemed to have been removed from the platform.
The leak landed at an especially awkward moment for Nolan, who has been pushing audiences to see The Odyssey in Imax. Deadline noted that the movie was shot entirely in that format, a choice aimed at making the theatrical presentation central to the experience.
Leaks can be difficult to scrub from X once copies start spreading, Deadline reported. In this case, the studio’s takedown push appeared to have cleared away the main posts by Sunday morning.
How did fans respond online?
Some fans tried a little old-school internet mischief of their own. Deadline reported that users posted videos that looked like they were the start of The Odyssey, beginning with the Universal globe and logo.
Instead of the movie, viewers were served a two-hour supercut of Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up,” a classic Rickroll. Deadline pointed to one such post on X as an example.
The stunt added a weirdly comic side plot to a serious studio problem: a major film circulating outside authorized channels while still playing in theaters.
Did the leak hurt The Odyssey at the box office?
Deadline reported that the leak did not appear to derail the film’s weekend business. The Odyssey posted an $87 million second weekend at the domestic box office, which Deadline said marked Nolan’s best second frame.
Premium formats did much of the lifting. Imax, premium large formats and 70MM accounted for 57% of the film’s second weekend, according to Deadline, up from 53% the previous weekend.
That matters because Nolan’s release strategy has been tied closely to the big-screen pitch. The film’s full Imax shoot and premium-format performance show that, even with piracy noise online, audiences were still paying for the theatrical version Universal and Nolan have been selling.
This story draws on original reporting from Deadline.