Matt Damon was spotted in Favignana, Italy, portraying a modern-day Odysseus in action.
On March 25th, Matt Damon was seen filming scenes for Christopher Nolan's upcoming film "The Odyssey" on the Italian island of Favignana, located west of Sicily.
Zendaya was also present during the filming of this Hollywood production, which is a cinematic adaptation of Homer’s heroic epic The Odyssey. The star-studded cast also includes Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, and Charlize Theron.
The latest photos from Nolan's production, released by People magazine, show Damon and Zendaya working on set, both on a rocky hillside.
In these shots, Damon sports a gray beard, shirtless with wet trousers, while Zendaya appears slightly disheveled, wearing a long dress with a distinct ancient Greek aesthetic.
So far, many details regarding the film's plot and cast remain tightly under wraps. What we do know with certainty is that Damon will play the role of Odysseus, while Holland will portray Telemachus, the son of the King of Ithaca.
Greece – Italy Recently, Damon was also spotted in Greece for "The Odyssey". Specifically, part of the filming took place on the stunning Voidokilia beach, where Nestor’s Cave is located nearby.
The choice of this location was no accident. According to Greek mythology, it was in this cave that Hermes hid the fifty cattle he stole from Apollo. Additionally, the great traveler Pausanias, who visited Pylos in 160 B.C., claimed that the royal cattle were kept there. In fact, when Heinrich Schliemann explored the cave, he discovered artifacts that indicated the area had been inhabited in ancient times.
What We Know In December 2024, Universal Pictures confirmed the upcoming project by the Oscar-winning director, tweeting: "Christopher Nolan's next film is an epic action saga shot worldwide using the brand-new IMAX film technology. The film brings Homer’s foundational epic to the IMAX screens for the first time and will be released worldwide on July 17, 2026."
On Monday, February 17th, Universal Pictures unveiled the first photo from Nolan's adaptation, showing Damon in armor and a cape with a matching headpiece. The caption read: "Matt Damon is Odysseus. A film by Christopher Nolan, #TheOdysseyMovie hits theaters on July 17, 2026."
Earlier cinematic and television adaptations of the epic include the 1997 miniseries "The Odyssey", starring Armand Assante and Greta Scacchi, as well as the 1954 Italian film "Ulysses", starring Kirk Douglas, Silvana Mangano, and Anthony Quinn. More recently, Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche narrated the story in the 2024 film The Return.