Christopher Nolan Was Shocked When This 'The Odyssey' Star Asked to Read the Script Before Signing On

Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is one of the most anticipated films this year, and only one actor asked to read the script before joining the cast.

The film is based on the ancient Greek epic poem by Homer. It follows Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, who embarks on a long, difficult journey after the Trojan War. The Odyssey stars MattDamon, Anne Hathaway, TomHolland, RobertPattinson, and Zendaya.

In a recent interview with GQ, Pattinson revealed his reaction after Nolan called him to talk about the film.

"I was like, ‘Yeah, can't wait to read it.' He's like, ‘You want to read it? Everyone else just said yes,'" the actor shared.

In The Odyssey Pattinson portrays Antinous, an arrogant man trying to become the king of Ithaca. The Twilight actor opened up about working in Hollywood.

"It's funny, because when you do a big movie, you kind of forget almost immediately how frustrating it is. I mean, there's just nothing worse in the world when you just can't get the jobs," he said.

"I just remember after Batman I was thinking like, I'll do another massive job afterwards, and I couldn't find the thing. And it was incredibly frustrating because I thought there was like a secret door which opened and like suddenly all these different projects are there. They're not. This doesn't exist. And it's because the whole industry's different."

Nolan understands how hard it is to be trusted with a big project. He believes directors should use their privilege to take risks.

"If you're lucky enough to succeed with a project, you kind of have a responsibility as a filmmaker to try and say, ‘Okay, what can I do? What am I allowed to do now that maybe I wouldn't have been allowed to do before or somebody else wouldn't be allowed to do?' Because these opportunities don't come up very often," he said.

The Odyssey premieres in theaters July 17.

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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 5:18 PM.