First Look at Matt Damon as Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey

The first official look at Matt Damon as Odysseus from Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey has been revealed by Empire Online.

The film adapts Homer’s ancient Greek epic, following Odysseus (Damon) on his long journey home after the Trojan War. Speaking to Empire, Nolan described the story as “foundational,” saying it “contains all stories.” He has been fascinated by this world for decades, having once been approached to direct Troy.

Nolan wanted to bring mythological storytelling to the screen with the scale, realism, and credibility of a major Hollywood IMAX production. The Odyssey features large-scale practical filmmaking, true to Nolan’s style, with big locations, big stars, and big spectacle. The production reportedly used over two million feet of film during a 91-day shoot, much of which took place on the open ocean to capture the authentic, dangerous beauty of Odysseus’s voyage.

“We shot over two million feet of film,” Nolan revealed of the 91-day shoot. “And much of that was out on the ocean, where Odysseus sets sail with his battle-hardened men. It’s pretty primal!”

He added, “I’ve been out on it for the last four months. We got the cast who play the crew of Odysseus’s ship out there on the real waves, in the real places. And yeah, it’s vast and terrifying and wonderful and benevolent, as the conditions shift. We really wanted to capture how hard those journeys would have been for people — and the leap of faith that was being made in an unmapped, uncharted world.”

Below are the official artworks for The Odyssey, illustrated by Paul Shipper. A new trailer for the film is expected to be released before the end of the year.

Filming began in February 2025, and the globe-trotting schedule included stops in Italy, Malta, Morocco, Greece, Scotland, Iceland, Western Sahara, with the final scenes shot in Los Angeles.

The film stars Damon as Odysseus, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Zendaya as Athena, Lupita Nyong’o as Calypso, Robert Pattinson as Hermes, Charlize Theron as Circe, along with Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Bill Irwin, Samantha Morton, Jesse Garcia, Will Yun Lee, Rafi Gavron, Shiloh Fernandez, Mia Goth, Corey Hawkins, and Nick E. Tarabay in undisclosed roles.

The Odyssey will be a mythical action epic based on the ancient Greek poem by Homer. It tells the story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and his perilous journey home after the Trojan War.

Set in the 8th century BC, after the ten-year Trojan War, the Greek hero Odysseus travels from Troy to Ithaca via Africa and southern Europe. His journey lasts an additional ten years, during which he faces many dangers, and all of his crewmates are killed. In his absence, Odysseus is presumed dead, leaving his wife, Penelope, and son, Telemachus, to deal with a group of unruly suitors competing for Penelope’s hand in marriage.

The film is produced by Nolan alongside his producing partner and wife, Emma Thomas, under their Syncopy banner. The project will have a $250 million budget, making it one of Nolan’s most expensive films ever.

The Odyssey will be released in theaters and IMAX in the United States on July 17, 2026, by Universal Pictures.