The most impressive detail in The Odyssey has to be how Christopher Nolan brings mythical creatures to life using practical effects and little to no use of CGI, including the giants.
Warning, the following contains spoilers for The Odyssey, so turn back now if you haven't seen it yet, but make sure to read our spoiler-free The Odyssey review first.
On their journey home from the Trojan War, Odysseus and his men dock at a number of islands to gather provisions. But during one quick stop, the men walk into a tall forest only to be met with an army of giants known as Laestrygonians. However, even though on screen the giants look about four times the height of Odysseus, star Matt Damon said the scene was created not with CGI, but using clever camera angles and actors of polar opposite heights.
"When we did the force perspective stuff with the Laestrygonians, there were these stuntmen who were all 7 feet (tall)," said Damon to Happy Sad Confused. "Then they got stuntmen who were under 5 feet, and so my double was a woman. So there are these shots in the movie where you see these giants looming over me."
Damon's female stunt double, Devyn Dalton, has since posted a behind-the-scenes look on Instagram at the performers who worked on the Laestrygonians, and the height difference is pretty astronomical. Check out the post below.
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The Laestrygonian scene is just one example of how Nolan utilised practical effects. The director achieved the Cyclops scene using a giant puppet which was strung up in a very real cave in Greece, and the pig scene included animatronics. However, aside from the practical effects, the director also shot the majority of the movie on location. Filming took place in the summer of 2025 over 91 days in six countries, including Morocco and Greece.
Before The Odyssey hit screens, Damon told GQ of his experience shooting in deserted castles and barren beaches. "I showed up on these locations and was like, Who fucking thought you could shoot a movie here?" said Damon. The star said that while on set, he had the feeling that The Odyssey would be the last movie of its kind due to its sheer scale, adding, "I don’t think people are going to be given the resources to shoot movies that way for much longer."
The Odyssey is out in cinemas now. For more, check out our beginner's guide to The Odyssey, and find out where the new movie places in our ranking of the best Christopher Nolan movies.
