Christopher Nolan lifts lid on 20-year ‘The Odyssey’ journey and reveals why he cast Travis Scott
Christopher Nolan has revealed that The Odyssey has been a film that’s been 20 years in the making, describing the telling of the story as “an odd gap in movie history”.
The acclaimed director is set to bring the literary epic from Homer to life on the big screen this summer, with an all-star cast including the likes of Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Charlize Theron and more.
Yet, the process of bringing such a massive undertaking to cinemas is not a responsibility Nolan has taken lightly. He revealed in a new interview with Time that he has been thinking about its development for over two decades.
The Oppenheimer filmmaker revealed that he had originally been in talks to direct the 2004 film Troy, based on one of Homer’s other most acclaimed works, The Iliad. However, the film, starring Brad Pitt and Eric Bana, ended up being helmed by Wolfgang Petersen.
Despite this, the opportunity planted a seed in Nolan’s head, as he explained: “That gave me options… And what had never really been done is a cinematic telling of The Odyssey with all of the capacity of a large-scale Hollywood studio production.”
Nolan continued, “It’s an odd gap in movie history,” it was clear from the beginning of Nolan’s vision to bring The Odyssey to life, it was going to be on a grander scale than audiences had ever been used to before. To this end, it is the first film ever to be shot solely on IMAX cameras.
Although the movie has been a long time in the making, the director emphasised the fact that he feels now is the right time to release it, compared to any other point in his illustrious career. “I think when I signed up to do Troy way back when, I was in a little over my head,” he admitted.
However, now Nolan feels equipped to take on a tale of such magnitude, adding, “The Odyssey is a sweeping story. I think I needed to build on what I learned doing large-scale films to be able to make this film.”
Why Travis Scott?
Aside from the mechanics of how the film was made and how long it has been in the pipeline, one of the major factors which has intrigued audiences about The Odyssey is some of its unique casting choices.
Although it is being held up by major Hollywood stars such as Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, and Lupita Nyong’o, a perhaps more unexpected addition was the casting of rapper Travis Scott in an as-yet unspecified supporting role.
When the rapper’s part was revealed during the broadcast of the first teaser at the Super Bowl, audiences were quick to voice a mixture of shock, confusion, and delight at the news.
For Nolan, however, his reasons for casting Scott were entirely justified. He said: “I cast him because I wanted to nod towards the idea that this story has been handed down as oral poetry, which is analogous to rap.”
Following the release of his last solo album, Utopia, in 2023, as well as his compilation record, JackBoys 2, in 2025, Scott’s major splash on the big screen signals a new turn for his career, which could lead to an even brighter future in Hollywood.
The Odyssey is set for release in cinemas on July 17th, 2026.
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