The highly anticipated trailer for Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is finally here — but some fans are underwhelmed with the movie’s first look.
Universal Pictures dropped the nearly two-minute-long trailer on Monday, December 22, which primarily featured Matt Damon as Odysseus. Fans briefly got to see Anne Hathaway taking on the role of Odysseus’ wife, Penelope, and Tom Holland as his son, Telemachus.
“After years of war, no one could stand between my men and home,” Damon, 55, could be heard saying in a voiceover. “Not even me.”
The movie is set to follow Damon’s Odysseus on his journey back home following the Trojan War. Several battles were teased during Monday’s trailer, which also included a look at the infamous Trojan Horse. (The Trojan Horse was previously revealed during a six-minute prologue shown ahead of Avatar: Fire and Ash, which hit theaters earlier this month.)
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Despite the widespread excitement that has been shown ahead of Nolan’s latest project, some moviegoers were hoping for more from The Odyssey’s first trailer.
“Christopher Nolan the Odyssey trailer looks like the most boring Greek mythology depiction ever,” one X user claimed. “It [doesn’t] even look like it’s worth watching on cinema screen.”
Another person wondered, “How do you make a trailer for the odyssey boring 😭.”
A third social media user questioned Nolan’s casting choice after seeing the first look.
“The Odyssey trailer giving snoozefest and I don’t know if Matt Damon was the right choice for this tbh,” they shared.
On the other hand, several X users were excited for the upcoming release.
“The Odyssey trailer is literally the most beautiful thing in existence,” one person wrote. Another added, “The Odyssey looks like a great time in the movies. That’s all that matters.”
Aside from Damon, Hathaway, 43, and Holland, 29, Nolan’s forthcoming epic is set to feature appearances from Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Mia Goth, Benny Safdie, Jon Bernthal and John Leguizamo, among others.
“The genius of the character, the cleverness, the inventiveness of him, that was a huge part of what interested me,” Nolan told Empire about Odysseus in November. “He’s not just a soldier. He’s an amazing strategist, a very wily person.”
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Damon also teased the film during an interview with the publication last month.
“I can say, without hyperbole, that it was the best experience of my career,” the actor recalled. “I saw the horse on the beach and I was just like, ‘F***.’ It was just so cool.”
He added, “We were shooting that [Trojan horse] stuff next week, so I go, ‘How are you going to do it?’ And [Nolan] goes, ‘I don’t know. We’ll just get in there and figure it out.’”
The Odyssey will be Damon’s third collaboration with Nolan, having previously starred in the director’s 2014 movie Interstellar and 2023’s Oppenheimer.
Damon said the movie is “exactly what you want of a summer movie.” He added: “It should be the most massively entertaining film. It should feel mythic.”
The Odyssey is set to hit theaters on July 17, 2026.
