Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is now filming in Greece, and the Oppenheimer director has assembled one of the most impressive casts we've seen in quite a while for his upcoming adaptation of Homer's epic poem.
We know that Matt Damon will take on the lead role of Odysseus, but the characters the rest of the starry cast are playing have been kept under wraps... until now.
Though some key cast members are not listed (Jon Bernthal, for example), Greek media site OneMan.com is claiming to have shed some light on which mythological heroes and villains a good chunk of the other actors will portray.
Just in case some of these roles are supposed to be a surprise, here's your possible spoiler warning.
Tom Holland will reportedly play Odysseus' son Telemachus (as expected), with Zendaya as Goddess of Wisdom Athena, Charlize Theron as Goddess of Sorcery Circe, Anne Hathaway as Odysseus' wife Penelope, Benny Safdie as king of Mycenae Agamemnon, and Lupita Nyong'o as his wife Clytemnestra.
This follows a previous report that Nolan intends to shoot the movie's Cyclops scenes at Nestor’s Cave in Greece, and a 6x6m mechanical anthropomorphic puppet of Polyphemus is being created for the sequence.
"Christopher Nolan’s next film The Odyssey is a mythic action epic shot across the world using brand-new IMAX film technology. The film brings Homer’s foundational saga to IMAX film screens for the first time and opens in theaters everywhere on July 17, 2026," said Universal Pictures in a statement when the project was announced.
Homer's ancient Greek poem follows Odysseus and his crew on their journey home following the Trojan War, encountering all manner of threats along the way, including the Cyclops Polyphemus, the Sirens, and the witch-goddess Circe.
The poem has been adapted (sometimes very loosely) a number of times before, starting with the 1911 silent film by Giuseppe de Liguoro, and followed by 1954’s Ulysses starring Kirk Douglas. The Cohen Brothers' O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) is also based on the epic adventure, as is 2024’s The Return starring Ralph Fiennes.
Anime fans may also recall the '80s Ulysses 31 series, which put a futuristic spin on the tale.
Back in 2015, Deadpool and Wolverine star Hugh Jackman was in talks to play Odysseus in an adaptation from Lionsgate and director Francis Lawrence, but the project never got off the ground.
What do you make of these rumored actor/character match-ups? Drop us a comment down below.
The Odyssey is due for release in theaters on July 17, 2026.
Athena fan art via Chrissabug.