What better film to mark the relaunch of Los Angeles’ historic Alex Theatre than the latest from Christopher Nolan — a director with a fanbase that, more than anyone else’s, sees analog film formats as the essential way to see his films?
At the roughly 40 locations around the world that are screening “The Odyssey” in Imax 70mm, screenings at times as early as 4 a.m. are selling out throughout the next two weeks. Combine that with digital Imax screenings, and “The Odyssey” is on pace to set a new opening weekend record for the premium format company.
Below, we document The Alex’s “Odyssey”-inspired relaunch as a movie house and the people who made it happen.
“The Odyssey” graces the marquee of the Alex Theatre, which will debut its new 70mm projector with Christopher Nolan’s new film.
Imax projectionist Taylor Umphenour and Miles Williams, owner and artistic director of the Alex Theatre, pose after an interview with TheWrap on July 14, 2026.
The main entrance to the theatre with Greco-Roman inspired architecture. Built in 1925, its design was inspired by Sid Grauman’s Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, which opened three years prior.
View from the balcony inside the Alex Theatre, complete with an Egyptian solar arch and Doric columns. “The Wise Little Hen,” the first Walt Disney cartoon starring Donald Duck, was one of the many cinematic classics that first screened here.
The Alex Theatre seats approximately 1,400 people, though several rows of seats were removed to make way for the new 35mm/70mm projector room.
Construction on the projector booth had to be done in less than two months to be ready for the release of the “The Odyssey”
Multiple layers of sound insulation were installed into the booth to prevent the sound of the projector from spilling out to the adjacent seats during screenings.
But while moviegoers won’t hear the projector, they’ll be invited to see it, as glass windows were added to allow attendees to see the projectionists at work.
Taylor Umphenour, right, oversees the instillation of the Alex Theatre’s new 35mm/70mm changeover projector.
With soundproofing, ventilation and equipment installed, Umphenour and his team spent days checking the sound and picture of the new 70mm system.
To test the equipment, Umphenour brought in the first reel of Christopher Nolan’s 2017 film “Dunkirk,” which had been released in 70mm in select theaters.
Taylor Umphenour checking roller alignment with test film.
70mm film reel
“The Odyssey” will be the first movie screened at the Alex in an analog film format since “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” which was the last movie screened at the theater in 1991 when it was operated by Mann Theatres.
Taylor Umphenour poses outside of the Alex Theatre in Glendale, Calif.