Summary

Collider’s Steven Weintraub talks with Zendaya and John Leguizamo for The Odyssey.

The pair discuss how Christopher Nolan pulled off a practical, on-location production, and his attitude on set.

They also talk about their experience filming with the intimidating IMAX compared to digital and working with an all-star cast.

Even stars Zendaya and John Leguizamo marvel at Christopher Nolan’s capabilities to pull off the adaptation of something as profound and epic as Homer’s The Odyssey. For Nolan’s most massive feature to date, the two join a long roster of talented actors, some reuniting with the writer-director from previous films, while others, like the two of them, shared a remarkable first-time experience on location. In The Odyssey, Matt Damon plays King Odysseus of Ithaca, who takes audiences on a heroic quest across the sea, as he attempts to get his crew home from the Trojan War, and reunite with his wife, Queen Penelope (Anne Hathaway), and son Telemachus (Tom Holland). The journey encounters several obstacles and characters, including Leguizamo’s Eumaeus, a faithful servant to Odysseus, Zendaya’s Athena, the goddess of wisdom and warfare, Charlize Theron’s nymph, Calypso, Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy, and her sister Clytemnestra, and Jon Bernthal as Menelaus. In this interview with Collider’s Steven Weintraub, Zendaya and Leguizamo discuss filming in spectacular locations, working practically, and performing alongside such a stellar ensemble. They also discuss Nolan’s impressive strategy to film dialogue with IMAX, what it was like adjusting to working with the large-screen format, and how why it’s more intimidating than filming digitally.
‘The Odyssey’ Demands To Be Seen in IMAX

“That’s the only way to do it.”

COLLIDER: The movie’s incredible. You’re both awesome in it. I wish everyone could see it in IMAX 70mm. JOHN LEGUIZAMO: I think that’s the only way you can see it. ZENDAYA: That’s the only way to do it. LEGUIZAMO: Chris is not going to let it go into a regular theater. It’s just insane. LEGUIZAMO: It’s spectacular. You’re immersed in the film. You feel like you’re in these real locations. You feel like you’re in Hades, and you feel like you’re in the desert, in the mountains. You’re in those places. Which leads me to my first question. Could you explain to me how Chris built the time machine that took you guys back to Ancient Greece to film on location? ZENDAYA: Honestly, it’s a secret that he’ll probably never tell. No, he’s incredible. What he also inspires in the people that he works with is such a determined work ethic, and people, really, who are such masters of their craft. I’m really being present in those moments and looking around and trying to be as much of a sponge as possible because you just genuinely can’t believe the places that you’re in and what you’re looking at, with so much being done practically. Even I got a peek behind the curtain. I got to see things being made that I was like, “How did you…? How is this…? How?” Even watching it back, I still am blown away. The magic is not lost at all, having seen it be made in real life and knowing how it was done. It’s really extraordinary. And I think to try to do something like The Odyssey, I don’t think there’s one guy who could do it. LEGUIZAMO: No, no. For him to take this huge, important piece of literature and make it come to life, it’s only a handful of directors — he might be the only one — who can really make it happen. I don’t think there’s another director who could have done this. I really, honestly believe that. For both of you, what was the most “I can’t believe this is my job” day on set? LEGUIZAMO: Wow. There was a lot of that, right? Because there were Travis Scott, Corey Hawkins, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Tom Holland. You keep naming them — Lupita Nyong’o — and you’re like, “Wait a minute, is this really happening? Is this is real life?” And then these incredible locations, 900 feet above sea level on this cliff with a real castle, and you’re going, “Wow, if he can pull this, it’s going to look amazing on film.” And then you see the real thing, where you can see a 360-view of the Mediterranean up there. It’s incredible. ZENDAYA: It’s crazy. I think probably even just my first day on set. I didn’t really know what to expect, and I’m very grateful that Tom came in on his day off because I was so nervous. You can only imagine. You read a script, and you start to think, “Well, how is this going to look? What is this going to be like?” And then you get to immerse yourself in the world that’s been created. There’s so much attention to detail and thoughtfulness in everything that you see, and it’s so tactile. It’s all there. There’s nothing I need to imagine. It’s all in front of me. And I get to do it with the most incredible people that I’m a massive fan of and have appreciated their work for so long. So, there’s definitely a sense of anxiety that comes with that.
Zendaya and John Leguizamo Detail Christopher Nolan’s Incredibly Unique Filming Process

Zendaya filmed the new movie and ‘Euphoria’ Season 3 back-to-back.

Image via Universal Pictures

What is it like the night or two before the first day of filming? How much are you in your head, like, “I’m about to work with Chris Nolan on one of the biggest movies he’s ever made?” ZENDAYA: I was kind of grateful that the day before I was shooting, I was literally on Euphoria doing a night shoot. I didn’t have enough time at that moment to freak too hard until I was there. So I was like, “Let me just compartmentalize,” as much as I could. I was grateful that I didn’t freak out just yet, so I could try to sleep. I love the IMAX format. I’m just curious for both of you, it’s an IMAX camera in a blimp so that you can do dialogue. What is that like as actors? You’ve never worked with a camera like that. How long did it take you to get used to that, and did either of you work with the mirror system? LEGUIZAMO: No, I didn’t get to, because I was sight-impaired, so I couldn’t see, so it didn’t affect me. The mirror system was so that you could see the other actor because the cameras are so big. I’d never worked with IMAX before, so it was a little scary at first because you know your face is going to be massive. You know you’ve got to adjust your acting a little bit. And then it took time to adjust to the noise, because without the blimp, it’s like a lawnmower. Then you’ve got three minutes to each reel, and then they have five minutes to reload each time. When you had long scenes, you had to stop in the middle and restart, and it takes a while to get used to that, to that rhythm of three minutes, and then we’re going to take time to readjust. Then, when he gets it, he gets it, and you’re done. ZENDAYA: Also, the preciousness of the film. LEGUIZAMO: Right. You only have a certain amount. ZENDAYA: You’re like, “I don’t want to waste any bit of this.” Like, “Let me not be the reason that this take doesn’t work out.” LEGUIZAMO: It’s not like digital, where digital like you can film and film. ZENDAYA: You can keep going. You’re not doing a series. That was definitely intimidating, for sure. LEGUIZAMO: Yeah, a little bit.

ZENDAYA: I remember I flubbed a line once, and I was mortified because I was like, “This is IMAX!” LEGUIZAMO: Everything felt like that. You didn’t want to let Chris down. ZENDAYA: And he was so cool about it. LEGUIZAMO: Yeah. He was so chill. ZENDAYA: He was like, “That’s fine.” LEGUIZAMO: He’s like, “Relax.” ZENDAYA: He’s like, “It’s fine. You’re trippin’.” LEGUIZAMO: But you couldn’t help but impose that. He’s trying to make this massive epic come to life, and you don’t want to be the impediment. You want to be the part that succeeds. The Odyssey opens in theaters and IMAX on July 17.

Release Date

July 17, 2026

Runtime

172 Minutes