Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey opens July 17 via Universal Pictures, and it arrives two weeks out carrying the particular gravity of a filmmaker whose last epic, Oppenheimer, earned 13 nominations and seven Oscars at the 96th Academy Awards.
The film adapts Homer's ancient Greek epic, following Odysseus across his decade-long journey home from the Trojan War. At a reported $250 million, it is the most expensive production of Nolan's career. It is also, according to the filmmakers, the first narrative feature ever shot entirely on IMAX cameras, with principal photography taking place across the United Kingdom, Morocco, and the Aeolian Islands near Sicily.
The cast is dense with Oscar history. Matt Damon plays Odysseus. Tom Holland plays his son Telemachus. Anne Hathaway plays Penelope. Zendaya plays the goddess Athena. Charlize Theron plays Calypso. Robert Pattinson plays the suitor Antinous. Lupita Nyong'o takes on two roles: Helen of Troy and her sister Clytemnestra.
Awards Radar named The Odyssey the expected frontrunner for the 99th Academy Awards in a July 3 roundup of first-half 2026 contenders, while noting that the race typically crystallizes only after fall festival screenings. Whether Nolan's cast earns individual acting recognition remains the open question. His films rarely break through in performance categories. Oppenheimer was the exception. The question now is whether The Odyssey can be another one.