By
Abigail Stevens
Published 14 minutes ago
Abigail is an editor for ScreenRant, currently writing and editing movie news. You may also have seen her thoughts on animated television, musical theater, and fantasy literature in Paste Magazine, Fantasy Hive, or The Oxford Blue. She has also written SR lists and op-eds covering movies, TV, and books as well. She is an English major through and through, having graduated with a B.A. from UC Santa Barbara and an MPhil from Oxford University.
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Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, doubtlessly one of the most anticipated movies of 2026, maintained a high level of secrecy while finding its cast, as revealed by one of the stars. Slated for release on July 17, 2026, this feature will be the Oscar-winning Oppenheimer director's take on the Greek myth, with his usual stunning visuals and a massive A-list cast.
The Odyssey's cast includes Matt Damon in the lead role as Odysseus, as well as Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Elliot Page, Mia Goth, Charlize Theron, Lupita Nyong'o, Jon Bernthal, and more. First-look images at The Odyssey from Empire have only recently confirmed which mythical figures some of the actors are playing.
With the reveal that Hathaway is in the role of Odysseus' wife Penelope, it was also confirmed that Goth, the star of Pearl and Frankenstein, will be playing Melantho, one of Penelope's handmaids. A relatively new star who is working with Nolan for the first time, Goth talked about how nerve-wracking meeting him was in a recent interview with Happy Sad Confused.
See Goth and Hathaway in Empire's exclusive image from The Odyssey below:
Goth also shared that auditioning for The Odyssey was a highly secretive process, reminiscent of how some big Hollywood franchises conceal from the actors which characters they are auditioning for. Goth was unable to read the script or even know for sure what her role was until she officially signed on. Check out her full comment below:
I auditioned for The Odyssey. I auditioned…they gave me dummy sides, so it had nothing to do with the script. […] And then I got the job, and then I found out that—I had to accept the job before I could even read the script and find out what the role was. So that was a new process.
Thus, this was an entirely new set of expectations for Goth, the result of Nolan being a bigger director than ever in the wake of Oppenheimer. The cast of The Odyssey was very mysterious for some time in the public eye, as we knew who was in the movie but not who they were playing, and were left to speculate based on knowledge of the iconic characters.
Other recently confirmed castings include Zendaya as the goddess Athena and Robert Pattinson as a villain, Penelope's ill-intentioned suitor Antinous, while Tom Holland being Odysseus' son Telemachus has been presumed for some time. Following the very vague, exclusively theatrical teaser trailer this summer, we could soon see a proper trailer for The Odyssey.
The Odyssey is certainly going to be one of the biggest movies of next year, and a major cinematic event, given Nolan's epic style. Concealing all this information from the actors while they were auditioning may not have been entirely necessary, as the story is already widely known — but Nolan and his team may have their reasons, with some surprises to come.
The Odyssey
Like Follow Followed Adventure Drama Release Date July 17, 2026 Director Christopher Nolan Writers Christopher Nolan Producers Emma ThomasCast
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Matt Damon
Odysseus
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Tom Holland
Telemachus
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Zendaya
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Anne Hathaway
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The Odyssey
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