Christopher Nolan makes history with 'The Odyssey' and IMAX thanks to a David Bowie classic

The Odissey of Christopher Nolan y Universal Picturesis making history in cinema.

With filming completed, the film that adapts Homer's epic poem has become the first narrative feature film filmed entirely with IMAX cameras. And you will love the reasons that made that possible.

The director of photography, Hoyte van Hoytemarevealed to Empire that a child and a classic David Bowie They were responsible. The cinematographer filmed an IMAX test of a child reading the lyrics Sound and Vision the Bowieto demonstrate whether IMAX cameras were advanced enough to record dialogue.

“I presented Chris with a huge close-up of a child on the IMAX screen, reciting David Bowie's 'Sound and Vision' from a piece of paper.”said van Hoytema. “It was very moving: that level of intimacy in image and sound, merged, projected in the theater.”

Nolan said the results were “electrifying,” adding:

“We would never have been able to get those ante shots.”

The footage showed that Nolan could shoot an entire movie with IMAX cameraswhereas before he was limited primarily to action scenes, as IMAX cameras were too noisy to film dialogue up close to the actor.

A new casing was created for the IMAX movie, called blimpto significantly reduce the noise produced by these cameras.

“The blimp system is revolutionary“Nolan said.”You can film a foot from an actor's face while they whisper and get usable sound. This allows you to capture intimate moments of performance in the most beautiful format in the world”.

Previously, IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond revealed to Variety that The Odyssey would experiment with “new IMAX technology,” and “equipment never used before,” of which we now have these details.

Filming an entire movie with IMAX technology has been Nolan's goal for years. The Dark Knight (2008), was the first film to use IMAX cameras to film some action scenes. Since then, the filmmaker has used IMAX cameras to shoot more and more scenes. The Oscar winner, Oppenheimerwas the first film to use the 65mm black and white IMAX format.

The photography of The Odyssey is directed by van Hoytema, who had already collaborated with Nolan on Interstellar, Dunkirk, Tenet y Oppenheimer. Van Hoytema won the Oscar for best cinematography for Oppenheimer.

Matt Damon takes the leading role of The Odyssey playing Odysseus, with Anne Hathaway like Penelope, his wife.

For Damon and Hathaway it is a new collaboration with Nolan. Both were part of Interstellarwith Hathaway also participating in The Dark Knight Risesand Damon in Oppenheimer.

The rest of the star cast includes Tom Holland like Telemachus, Mia Goth playing Melanto, one of the palace maids, Zendaya (Euphoria), Lupita Nyong'o (A Quiet Place: Day One), Robert Pattinson (Die My Love), Charlize Theron (The Old Guard 2), Jon Bernthal (The Bear), John Leguizamo (The Green Veil), Benny Safdie (Oppenheimer), Himesh Patel (Tenet), Elliot Page (Inception), Bill Irwin (The Dropout), Samantha Morton (The Serpent Queen), Jesse Garcia (Flamin’ Hot), Will Yun Lee (The Good Doctor), Logan Marshall-Green (The Invitation), y Corey Hawkins (The Piano Lesson).

Based on the ancient epic poem by Homer, The story revolves around Odysseus, king of Ithaca, on his perilous journey home after the Trojan Warexploring themes of heroism, loyalty, cunning, and fighting against divine will.

During his journey, the protagonist faces the cyclops Polyphemus, the mermaids, the nymph Calypso and the witch goddess Circe in the treacherous oceans that separate him from his native island and his wife Penelope, who breaks up a wedding procession that she weaves every night in case one of the suitors who have taken over her home ends up marrying her if her husband does not return. His memory is also guarded by his son Telemachus (played by Holland in the film). The story also includes gods such as Athena, Poseidon, and Zeus.

Filming ended in recent weeks, after having been carried out in Morocco and Sicily, specifically on Favignana Island, a place where according to scholars, it served for Odysseus's wanderings in Homer's epic. It is believed to be the place where Homer imagined that Odysseus would disembark with his various tribulations to roast goats and stock up on food. The island, also known as “the island of the goats” is part of the Egadi Islands archipelago, off the northwest coast of Sicily.

The Odyssey was previously adapted into the Italian film Ulysses from director Mario Camerini and star Kirk Douglas. In 1997, Andrei Konchalovsky adapted it into a miniseries with Armand Assante in the lead role. The most recent adaptation is the 2024 film, The Return, by Uberto Pasolini, with Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche in leading roles.

Nolan produces with his associate and wife, Emma Thomasfor their production company, Syncopy.

Universal set its premiere in theaters for July 17, 2026. It will include IMAX theaters.