IMAX Ticket Scalping Surges in South Korea for Nolan's 'Odyssey'

Moviegoers in South Korea are facing extreme seat scarcity and inflated ticket prices for IMAX screenings of Christopher Nolan's film “오디세이” [1, 2].

The shortage has triggered a surge in ticket scalping on second-hand applications. Because the film was shot entirely on IMAX film ^[1], fans are prioritizing the format to achieve the visual experience intended by the director.

Demand has reached a point where even unconventional showtimes are nearly full. Remaining seats for early-morning screenings at 6:30 a.m. and midnight showings have dropped to single-digit numbers ^[1]. This trend is visible at South Korea's largest IMAX theater and venues in Guri, Gyeonggi Province [1, 2].

Nolan's commitment to the format drives this behavior. He said the reason for filming in a large-format film is that it is the format closest to the way the human eye sees the world. He said that for those interested in drawing the audience into the story, IMAX is the most suitable format.

The production scale of the film further fuels public interest. The production team built a Trojan horse prop that stood over 10 meters tall ^[1]. Every frame of the movie was captured using IMAX film ^[1], a technical choice that limits the number of theaters capable of showing the film in its native resolution.

While standard screenings remain available, the specific demand for the IMAX experience has turned ticket acquisition into a competition. Scalpers are leveraging this scarcity to list seats on resale apps at prices significantly higher than the official box office rates [1, 2].