Christopher Nolan already has his post–The Odyssey movie lined up

If you thought Christopher Nolan had ticked just about every cinematic box going, well, think again. The bloke behind Oppenheimer, Inception, Interstellar, and the Dark Knight trilogy is once again mixing things up, this time with a sword-and-sandals fantasy epic based on Homer’s The Odyssey. That’s Nolan for you—one minute he’s building dream worlds, the next he’s juggling atomic bombs, and now it’s ancient Greek monsters and gods on the big screen. So while everyone else is counting down the days to release, Nolan’s already planning his next move, and let’s just say, he’s got horror on the brain.

Nolan’s Next Obsession: Horror

In a recent sit-down with Fred Asquith—yes, the chat’s up on YouTube if you want to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth—Nolan was pretty open about where his head’s at. There’s one genre he reckons he’s never tackled head-on: proper horror. Here’s Nolan’s take, straight from the interview:

'I'd love to do a horror movie, but it's all about the idea. It's all about, is there a story that really compels you, and I've never found that for me other than in other ways. There's a sense in which Oppenheimer is a horror movie. It certainly was very dark material to engage with for that long. And there are very significant elements of horror baked into The Odyssey in the original text. So, I've tried to fully embrace those because I think it's a genre that's really essentially cinematic. It's a visceral genre. It's one where you're really trying to give the audience a feeling of what the characters are experiencing. And that's the type of filmmaking I really enjoy.'

So, while he hasn’t done a straightforward horror flick yet, Nolan’s not exactly a stranger to dark and unsettling material. He points out there were already flashes of horror in Oppenheimer (fair point), and he’s pulled out the stops to channel the terror in The Odyssey—monsters, curses, the lot. If he can dream up a story that truly grips him, he’ll dive into full-scale horror next.

The Odyssey: Monsters, Mayhem, and a Bit of Terror

Let’s talk about The Odyssey. Filming this beast was no picnic—91 days over six months, shot across multiple countries, so you know Universal’s not skimping. Nolan’s making a serious play: swords clashing, ancient curses flying, and Cyclops and Sirens that don’t look remotely friendly if the trailers are anything to go by. The approach is grounded but, frankly, properly unnerving. Reviewers lucky enough to have had a sneak peek say the film leans further into horror than you’d ever expect from the bloke who gave us Batman in black neoprene. The Hollywood Reporter has already called out a ‘fleshed-out horror sequence’ as a first for Nolan, after 25 years in the business.

Biggest Nolan Film Yet? All Signs Point to Yes

The Odyssey is set for a big splash on 17 July, 2026, with Universal lining it up as their major tentpole—opening weekend IMAX screenings are already fully booked, which, yes, is a full year out. Not much surprise there, considering the budget supposedly tops $250 million. For context, that’s even more than The Dark Knight Rises, which was already eye-watering money.

One of The Odyssey’s main stars isn’t holding back on the hype either, already calling it a ‘masterpiece’ and saying it’s ‘unlike anything the world has ever seen’. That’s a bold call, but Nolan’s never been one to undercook the ambition. Judging by what we’ve seen and heard so far, expect monsters, psychological fallout, and a handbrake turn in tone for a director best known for giving audiences a brain workout rather than nightmare fuel.