To play Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s epic The Odyssey, Matt Damon trimmed more than 30 pounds and says he did it the old-fashioned way: dialing in his diet and training until he was back to about 167 pounds, roughly his high school weight. Castmates say the change was obvious the moment he walked on set.
In Nolan’s take on the classic, Damon leads as the wily Greek hero making his perilous journey home after the Trojan War — a role that demands both physical endurance and the kind of strategic edge audiences know from Damon’s action work. The movie is slated for 2026.
“Sadly, there's no shortcut. It's all diet and and exercise. I'm like highly allergic to gluten,” Damon told Entertainment Tonight.
“The first day I turned up, I'm like, ‘How can I see abs? You got a loose T-shirt on,’” co-star Robert Pattinson said to Entertainment Tonight, laughing about Damon’s lean frame.
Damon also joked to E! News that when Nolan told him there would be shirtless scenes, his immediate response was essentially to ask how long he had to get camera-ready — and then he went to work.
The film
Christopher Nolan directs the new adaptation, with Damon starring as Odysseus on the decade-long trek that pits him against monsters, gods and his own war scars. The blend of bruising action and brainy gamesmanship plays to Damon’s wheelhouse while anchoring the myth in something human.
The Odyssey is expected to hit theaters in 2026; a specific U.S. release date hasn’t been announced.