Christopher Nolan Discusses 'The Odyssey' Length, Confirms It Will Be Shorter Than 'Oppenheimer'

Christopher Nolan has offered fresh insight into the runtime of his highly anticipated adaptation of The Odyssey.

The 55-year-old filmmaker recently opened up about the duration of his next project, which follows his 2023 epic Oppenheimer—a film that clocks in at three hours. Speaking to the Associated Press, Nolan explained the technical constraints that shaped his decision.

"One of the things that's really important to me is to be showing the film wherever possible on IMAX film, projecting the format, because we shot the entire movie on IMAX film, and the longest we've ever been able to get onto the IMAX projector is three hours," he said. "So we know it's less than three hours. I can say the film is shorter than Oppenheimer. It's still an epic, it's an epic film as the subject matter demands, but it is shorter."

The sprawling cast brings together an impressive lineup of talent: Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron.

The film adapts Homer's classical epic, following the ten-year voyage of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, as he attempts to return home following the fall of Troy. Homer's original work was composed around the 8th or 7th century BC.

The Odyssey arrives in theaters on July 17, 2026.