Critics have handed The Odyssey a near-mythical 98% score on Rotten Tomatoes, proving the internet’s pitchforks were apparently no match for glowing reviews. Quite the plot twist. Christopher Nolan’s epic had spent months weathering storms over Lupita Nyong’o’s Helen of Troy casting, Travis Scott’s mythological debut, and trailers packed with modern dialogue that had traditionalists clutching their Bronze Age sandals.

Now, with release day edging closer, critics have made their verdict unmistakable: The Odyssey is every bit the epic the internet argued it could never be.

The Odyssey’s 98% rotten tomatoes score does the talking

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey arrived on Rotten Tomatoes like it had borrowed Hermes’ winged sandals, debuting with a dazzling 99% Tomatometer. A few more reviews later, the score gently settled at 98%, hardly the dramatic downfall the internet might have ordered. For most filmmakers, that would still qualify as divine intervention.

The numbers only become more impressive from there. With more than 109 critic reviews counted, The Odyssey is now the highest-rated film of Christopher Nolan’s career. It sails past The Dark Knight, which was his highest with a 94%, Memento, and even the Academy Award-winning Oppenheimer, making the filmmaker’s latest voyage his best-reviewed yet.

The audience, however, has not spoken just yet. The Popcornmeter and Verified Audience scores remain on standby until previews begin on July 16, followed by the film’s wide theatrical release on July 17, 2026. But if the ticket sales, such as IMAX, basically running out of tickets, speak for themselves, the verdict may come out in Nolan’s favor. Until then, critics have the deck entirely to themselves.

Of course, with The Odyssey weathering so much backlash over its faithfulness to Homer’s original, one question practically begs to be asked: what impressed critics enough to overlook the storm?

What about The Odyssey impressed the critics?

If critics are to be believed, Christopher Nolan did not merely adapt Homer. He supersized him. Reviewers cannot stop raving about The Odyssey‘s towering IMAX spectacle, calling its practical effects and colossal action unlike anything the filmmaker has attempted before. Even quieter moments reportedly feel enormous, proving scale is not always measured in explosions.

The spectacle, however, is only half the story. Matt Damon is earning praise for bringing a battle-worn Odysseus to life, while Robert Pattinson’s gleefully ruthless Antinous and Samantha Morton’s mesmerizing Circe leave lasting impressions. Add a nerve-shredding Cyclops sequence and Ludwig Göransson’s thunderous score, and suddenly that early internet mutiny feels like ancient history.

Would you agree with the critics or the online hubbub about The Odyssey? Let us know in the comments!