Renowned filmmaker Christopher Nolan, Tom Holland and Matt Damon’s India tour ahead of ‘The Odyssey’ premiere made headlines. Their visit to Mumbai’s iconic Olympia Coffee House for tea and bun maska to Indian celebs queuing up to watch the high and mighty movie premiere in the city – all grabbed attention and was all over the social media over the weekend. But here’s what you should know about ‘The Odyssey’ before booking your tickets:
The Odyssey – What is it about?
It is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic the Odyssey. The epic actioner is written and directed by Christopher Nolan.
Nolan reportedly studied several translations of the Odyssey. He depicted a realistic interpretation of Greek mythology, drawing inspiration from the epic historical films Andrei Rublev (1966) and Ran (1985), as well as the films of special effects artist Ray Harryhausen. He began writing The Odyssey in March 2024.
The Odysset follows Odysseus – the legendary Greek king of Ithaca, on his long and perilous journey home following the Trojan War, chronicling his encounters with mythical beings such as the Cyclops Polyphemus, Sirens, and he nymph Calypso, while attempting to reunite with his wife, Penelope.
The Odyssey – Most expensive Nolan film
With an estimated budget of $250 million, the film is among the most expensive of Nolan’s career, and the first to be shot entirely on IMAX’s 70 mm film cameras.
Meet The Odyssey full cast
The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the Greek king of Ithaca, and chronicles his long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War and his encounters with mythical beings as he attempts to reunite with his wife, Penelope, portrayed by Anne Hathaway. The ensemble cast includes Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron. Nolan and his wife Emma Thomas produced the film through their production company, Syncopy.
On use of modern dialogue
Nolan defended the film’s use of modern dialogue. In a separate interview to a publication, he said the approach was intended to capture the grounded and accessible nature of Homer’s original work rather than present an overly formal interpretation of the ancient world.
“When you look at the ancient world, people tend to view the ancient world in weird ways and there’s a lot of cultural prejudice, elevating it just because it’s old,” he said, adding, “When you go to the poem, what you find is something that’s really earthy, grounded and accessible. So, for me, in building the world of the film, what I talk to all the actors about is, I want to center it on that and make it feel very fresh for modern audiences and do away with some of those assumptions,” as per The Hollywood Reporter.
The Odyssey premiered on July 6, 2026, at the Empire Leicester Square in London, ahead of a theatrical release by Universal Pictures on July 17, 2026 in the United States and the United Kingdom.
