Coming off the success of Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan has decided to tackle the daunting tale of Homer's The Odyssey as his next project, which will continue a theme found in most of the filmmaker's movies. Nolan is, without a doubt, one of the most prolific and renowned directors of the 21st century. So, if anyone were to take on The Odyssey, it's fitting that Nolan would be the one to do so. Many have faith that Nolan will do the story justice, especially since the classic story is similar to some of the films he has directed, written, and produced before.

According to Universal Pictures (via X), Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is "a mythic action epic shot across the world using brand new IMAX film technology. The film brings Homer's foundational saga to IMAX film screens for the first time and opens in theaters everywhere on July 17, 2026."

Nolan's 2026 movie The Odyssey is an adaptation of Homer's epic poem of the same name written around 750-650 BCE (over 2,000 years ago). The story follows Odysseus, a Greek hero and the King of Ithaca. Following the end of the long and hard-fought Trojan War, Odysseus sets out on a journey to return to his home. It takes him ten years, during which he encounters various dangers and threats that impede his progress. The Odyssey's premise should sound at least a little familiar to fans of Nolan's work, seeing as it contains one of the director's most common themes.

The Odyssey Is Yet Another Nolan Movie About A Character's Journey Back Home

Homer's Poem Tracks Odysseus' 10-Year Trek After The Trojan War

As mentioned above, The Odyssey tracks the progress of Odysseus' journey from Troy to Ithaca, his home, which falls in line with one of Christopher Nolan's most common themes. Many of the famous filmmaker's projects chronicle someone returning home. All of them still differ greatly from one another, of course, but it's difficult to deny that Nolan loves telling stories about long and difficult journeys that some must take to get back to where they started. The Odyssey will simply be his latest one.

While roles haven't been revealed as of the writing of this article, seven of the cast in Nolan's The Odyssey have been announced. Nolan is bringing back a handful of actors he has worked with before, including Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, and Robert Pattinson. He has also cast stars who haven't been in his previous movies, including Zendaya, Tom Holland, Lupiya Nyong'o, and Charlize Theron. One of Damon, Holland, or Pattinson is likely to play Odysseus. Meanwhile, the others might be playing Penelope, Athena, Telemachus, Circe, Polyphemus, and Poseidon (all of whom have important roles in The Odyssey).

Some Of Nolan's Best Movies Explore Characters Struggling To Find Their Way Home

Interstellar, Inception, Batman Begins, Etc.

Before The Odyssey, many of Christopher Nolan's acclaimed movies contain a protagonist attempting (or avoiding) to return home, whether it's a literal journey or a metaphorical one. For example, Nolan's second movie, Memento, features Guy Pearce's Leonard lying to himself so he can never return to his real life. Batman Begins also chronicles Bruce Wayne's escape from a Bhutan prison and return to Gotham City, while The Dark Knight Rises features Christian Bale's character thrust into a similar situation.

Other Nolan films with a "journey back home" element are Inception, Interstellar, and Dunkirk. Some of them are more obvious than others, like Matthew McConaughey's Coop traveling through space, trying to find another home for mankind and return to his children in Interstellar. Or, Dunkirk's depiction of the Dunkirk evacuation during World War II. However, The Odyssey's story will likely have the most clear "journey back home" theme of them all.

Christopher Nolan Is Going Back To The Source With The Odyssey After Similar Stories

Nolan's Last Film Was The Oscar-Winning Biopic Oppenheimer

Unlike most of his movies, Christopher Nolan will have source material to work with while developing The Odyssey. His most recent film, Oppenheimer, was based on Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin's 2005 biography American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, though. So, perhaps Nolan wanted to continue adapting stories. It seemingly worked with Oppenheimer, which won seven Academy Awards, including Nolan's first Best Director win. Whatever the case, a lot of hype is building around Nolan's next movie, The Odyssey, not only because of who's making it and who's in it but also because of the source material.

Source: X