Matt Damon says ‘The Odyssey’ is the hardest film of his career
The Oscar winner recalls Christopher Nolan’s warning before filming, saying the demanding production proved the director was right.
Daily TribuneThe Oscar winner recalls Christopher Nolan’s warning before filming, saying the demanding production proved the director was right.
Matt Damon.
The Odyssey/iMDB
After more than three decades in Hollywood, Matt Damon believed he had seen the industry’s toughest productions. That changed when he took on the lead role in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.
Speaking on Sunday Sitdown with Willi Geist, the Academy Award-winning actor said portraying Odysseus, the legendary king of Ithaca, became the most physically demanding experience of his career despite having appeared in nearly 80 films.
Damon recalled that Nolan had tried to prepare him for the scale of the production before filming even began. Confident in his years of experience, the actor initially thought he knew what to expect.
“He was like, ‘This movie’s gonna be hard,’” Damon recalled. “And I looked at him like, ‘I’ve made, I don’t know, 80 movies.’”
Only after production got underway did Damon realize the director had meant every word.
“And he goes, ‘No. This movie’s gonna be really hard.’ He, to his credit, was not lying.”
The Odyssey opens in Philippine cinemas on 15 July 2026. The film has a confirmed runtime of 172 minutes (2 hours and 52 minutes).
