The Odyssey is heading to cinemas next year, and it might be Christopher Nolan's most epic movie to date. Following his Oscar win with Oppenheimer, the British filmmaker is adapting one of the most famous and influential poems of all time with a star-studded cast, a big budget, and some stunning real locations.
We can't wait to see Nolan's next movie on the big screen, so here we've compiled everything we know so far about The Odyssey release date, confirmed cast, first-look footage, and details about how he's adapting Homer's epic poem. Of course, it's already one of our most anticipated upcoming movies.
With filming already under way, we won't have to wait too long to start seeing some images of the film, hopefully even a trailer in the next few months. For now, we know Matt Damon is playing the lead character, Odysseus, with an early first picture showing him in costume. However, even that has caused some controversy among classicists over the accuracy of his armour.
Historical accuracy aside, a new Christopher Nolan film is always a cinematic event. As one of the best filmmakers of our time, Nolan has built a reputation for big-scale, epic works, from The Dark Knight trilogy to sci-fi classics like Inception and Interstellar. Every feature Nolan makes is always something special, but given the scope of The Odyssey this just might be his all-time masterpiece.
Despite the scale, though, one of the film's cast members said that Nolan is helming the movie "like an indie film, because he's not doing it by committee", adding that the filmmaker is "like an indie filmmaker, but with crazy money". The film is set to be the most expensive movie of Nolan's career, with a budget of $250 million.
Ready to take a deep dive into Homer's epic story? Below, we've compiled everything there is to know about Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey release date, cast, plot, trailers, and more. That saves you from embarking on an epic journey like the one Odysseus will go on in the movie, as all you have to do is scroll down for all the info.
The Odyssey release date
Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey has a set release date of July 17, 2026 – so get it in your diaries if you haven't already!
Because this is Nolan we are talking about, it will arrive exclusively in theaters worldwide during the summer blockbuster season and the best way to watch it is at an IMAX screen, especially since new IMAX technology was developed just for this movie.
The Odyssey cast
If you thought Nolan's previous film Oppenheimer featured a stacked cast, it turns out you have seen nothing yet.
The Odyssey sees an all-star cast come together to bring this epic story to the big screen, with many of Nolan's former collaborators returning including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, and Elliot Page. They will be joined by Hollywood A-listers including Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron.
Right now it is unclear which characters each cast member will be portraying aside from one – Damon will take on the lead role of Odysseus, the legendary Greek king whose journey we follow. This was confirmed via a first look image which showed Damon in costume looking ready for battle.
You can see the confirmed The Odyssey cast so far below:
- Matt Damon – Odysseus
- Tom Holland
- Anne Hathaway
- Zendaya
- Lupita Nyong'o
- Robert Pattinson
- Charlize Theron
- Jon Bernthal
- Benny Safdie
- John Leguizamo
- Elliot Page
- Himesh Patel
- Bill Irwin
- Samantha Morton
- Mia Goth
- Corey Hawkins
- Cosmo Jarvis
- Ryan Hurst
The Odyssey plot
If you haven't already guessed it from the title alone, The Odyssey will be based on Homer's epic ancient Greek poem of the same name.
One of the oldest surviving literary works having been written around the 8th or 7th century BC, The Odyssey tells the story of Greek hero Odysseus over the course of 24 books. It follows the king of an island known as Ithaca as he journeys home from Troy, following the decade-long Trojan War.
That homecoming journey also takes another 10 years, as Odysseus encounters many threats including several monsters after enraging the god Poseidon by blinding one of his Cyclops sons. Whilst Odysseus is absent during this journey, his wife Penelope and son Telemachus presume he is dead, leaving them to contend with several unruly suitors who are competing to be the former's new husband.
Over the years The Odyssey has been retold countless times so it will be interesting to see how Nolan interprets the classic story. However, one thing is for sure – it is set to be the director's most epic feature yet.
Jim Orr, Universal Pictures' distribution chief, said at CinemaCon in early April 2025 that the film will be "a visionary, once-in-a-generation cinematic masterpiece that Homer himself would quite likely be proud of".
Is there a The Odyssey trailer?
No, not yet! Currently, there's no trailer for The Odyssey. Although we have already had our first look image from the movie, it will probably be a while until we get a teaser for Christopher Nolan's next outing.
Even though shooting is currently underway, filming only began in February 2025, so there is still a way to go until there's enough footage for a trailer. If you look at what happened with Nolan's last movie, Oppenheimer, the first teaser for that released in July 2022, so a year before the film's July 2023 release date.
And so, with The Odyssey set for a July 2026 release date, we could be looking at July this year for the first trailer. Watch this space!
As we eagerly await Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, check out our guide to all the other movie release dates you need to add to your calendar.
