After months of speculation about Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to his critical and box office smash “Oppenheimer,” which won him the Best Director Oscar, Universal Pictures announced ahead of the holiday season on X that it will bring Homer’s “Odyssey” to the big screen.

The Odyssey is a classic piece of Homer’s literature, divided into 24 different books preceded by The Iliad. It tells the ten-year travel story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, on his journey home after the Trojan War. On the way he encounters numerous dangers and learns of the deaths of his teammates. Telemachus (Odysseus’ son), Penelope (Odysseus’ wife), Athena, Circe, Poseidon and Zeus are all main characters.

Historians and scholars date “The Odyssey” to between 750 and 650 B.C. The first printed Greek version appeared in 1488. In the centuries since, it has remained one of the most studied, adapted and parodied stories of all time, with adaptations such as Giuseppe de Liguoro’s 1911 silent film Ulysses Kirk Douglas in 1954 and the Coen Brothers’ 2000 comedy “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”

With a new adaptation on the horizon, here’s everything we know so far about Nolan’s version of The Odyssey.

Who stars in the film and have you worked with Nolan before?

Like the all-star cast assembled for “Oppenheimer,” “Odyssey” is already stacked with major talent in Hollywood – confirmed names include Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson and Charlize Theron.

Damon most recently appeared in Oppenheimer as Lt. General Leslie Groves after being little known in Interstellar. Pattinson appeared in “Tenet” as Neil alongside John David Washington and Elizabeth Debicki. Going back a little further, Hathaway had supporting roles as an astronaut in Interstellar and as Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises, marking just over ten years since her last collaboration with Nolan.

For Holland, Zendaya, Nyong’o and Theron, “The Odyssey” is the first collaboration with Nolan. Holland and Zendaya, who are a real-life couple, will reunite on screen after the Marvel Spider-Man films.

How is the film shot?

According to Universal Pictures’ social media post, “The Odyssey” will be “shot around the world using all-new IMAX film technology.” Nolan’s craft has become synonymous with IMAX, as “Oppenheimer,” “Dunkirk,” “Tenet” and “Interstellar,” recently re-released in theaters to mark its 10th anniversary, were all shot on IMAX cameras.

Who else is creatively involved?

Nolan also writes and produces the film and reunites with his longtime producer and life partner Emma Thomas, who won the Oscar for Best Picture with Nolan for “Oppenheimer.”

How faithful will this adaptation of “The Odyssey” be?

It remains unclear how closely Nolan plans to follow Homer’s famous story, although Universal Pictures’ social media post touts “a mythical action epic around the world.”

When should the film be released?

The film is scheduled to be released in cinemas worldwide on July 17, 2026 after a production start in 2025. Nolan released “Oppenheimer,” “Dunkirk,” “Inception” and “The Dark Knight” in the same month.