Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey Gets First Trailer, Teases New Epic on Ancient Ground

Christopher Nolan is diving into new territory with an adaptation of The Odyssey, bringing Odysseus’ ten-year struggle to get home after the Trojan War to the big screen. Matt Damon stars as a man torn between duty to his men and a strong desire to return to his family. The drama’s grandeur is set against a backdrop of immense oceans and unknown coastlines, with any decision made by Odysseus making the difference between life or death.

Nolan took the lead on this one, writing and producing with the assistance of his wife, Emma Thomas, with whom he has collaborated on more projects than we can count. They ended up filming for 91 days in breathtaking landscapes, utilizing a staggering 2 million feet of 65mm film. Of course, it doesn’t mean his go-to cameraman, the brilliant Hoyte van Hoytema, wasn’t up to the job with his new-generation IMAX cameras, which puts you right in the heart of things.

The supporting ensemble, which reads like a who’s-who of the film industry, gives some outstanding performances. Anne Hathaway is outstanding as Odysseus’ patient wife Penelope, and Tom Holland does an excellent job as Telemachus, Odysseus’ kid who is struggling to cope without a father. Then there’s Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Mia Goth, Benny Safdie, Jon Bernthal, John Leguizamo, and all the other amazing performers that help bring the classic characters to life.

The first trailer for the film portrays Odysseus in the Trojan horse, attempting to keep his company together in the face of severe weather and monstrous perils. There’s the hulking cyclops in a dark cave, the siren screams in the distance, and fleeting glimpses of the sorceress Circe and the nymph Calypso… you get the picture. The trailer effectively emphasizes how spectacular this entire event will be. It’s all set to Ludwig Göransson’s stirring music, which propels everything along at a rapid pace.

With the opportunity to put his personal stamp on the epic, he thought that now was the time to broadcast The Odyssey in a way that would absolutely astound the audience. Universal Pictures will release the film in theaters on July 17, 2026, and it is already generating a lot of buzz, with some locations already selling out IMAX showings.