- Universal has published a first-look image of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey starring Matt Damon as the titular hero Odysseus.
- Damon is joined by a star-studded cast that ranges from Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Robert Pattinson; to Anne Hathaway, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Mia Goth, and Jon Bernthal.
- The Odyssey release date: July 17th, 2026.
For his first post-Oppenheimer effort, Christopher Nolan has decided to tackle another wildly ambitious adaptation with Homer’s Odyssey; starring an equally atomic collection of A-list talent.
Led by serial Nolan collaborator Matt Damon, who has been confirmed for the role of legendary Greek king Odysseus himself (in the image above and below), the other A-listers you can also expect include the following:
- Tom Holland
- Zendaya
- Robert Pattinson
- Lupita Nyong’o
- Anne Hathaway
- Charlize Theron
- Benny Safdie
- Jon Bernthal
- Elliot Page
- Himesh Patel
- Bill Irwin
- Samantha Morton
- Mia Goth
The Odyssey marks the third project Damon has collaborated on with Christopher Nolan after Interstellar and Oppenheimer, tying Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar); and the second for Robert Pattinson (Tenet), Himesh Patel (Tenet), plus Benny Safdie (Oppenheimer).
For those of you who’ve somehow evaded the Homeric classic, the story follows Odysseus, King of Ithaca, as he embarks upon a decade-long homecoming following the Trojan War. Along the way, his return is made perilous (and prolonged) by mythical creatures as well as the “wrath of the gods.”
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Eventually, the lost king must rescue his wife Penelope and son Telemachus from swarms of suitors who seek to claim both the queen’s hand, and Ithaca’s throne, for themselves.
“Christopher Nolan’s next film The Odyssey is a mythic action epic shot across the world using brand new IMAX film technology,” Universal last December.
“The film brings Homer’s foundational saga to IMAX film screens for the first time and opens in theatres everywhere on July 17, 2026.”
While the mythological subject matter is something of a departure from his usual high-concept and historical stories, this represent quite a full-circle moment for Christopher Nolan.
According to Troy director Wolfgang Petersen, before he changed the game by crafting the genre-defining Batman Begins, a young Nolan was in the running to helm an Odyssey adaptation… which would’ve served as a big-screen sequel to Petersen’s own 2004 Iliad adaptation starring Brad Pitt and Eric Bana; with Sean Bean reprising his role as King Odysseus.
Keep an eye out for details surrounding Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey here as they surface (e.g. further casting, trailer, release updates).
