As we stare at the ever-increasing cast list for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey, we can’t help but think of the whole thing as a giant puzzle. How does this list of names—including Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson (deep breath), Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Benny Safdie, John Leguizamo, Elliot Page, Himesh Patel, Bill Irwin, Samantha Morton, Jesse Garcia, Will Yun Lee, Rafi Gavron, and Shiloh Fernandez (big exhale) map onto one of the oldest and most famous stories of all time? And is there any universe in which Mia Goth doesn’t end up playing the dangerous and treacherous witch Circe when the movie actually gets made?
The X star is one of two major additions made to the cast on Friday afternoon, alongside Corey Hawkins, who’s a bit harder to pin down—The Odyssey has a lot of bit parts for guys, what with all the crewmembers Odysseus gets killed during his journey, and all the asshole suitors who bug his wife while he’s away. But it’s hard to imagine Goth not playing Circe, the witch who transforms the hero’s crew into pigs after they come across her enchanted island. (Although, now that we think about it, she could also play Calypso… or one of the lotus eaters… Damn, this is actually pretty tough.)
So far, Nolan hasn’t revealed who any of his cadre of extremely big-name actors will be portraying; we’re assuming, based on age, and the fact that he was among the first cast members announced, that Damon will be playing Odysseus himself, but this is all just speculation. It doesn’t help that new names continue to get added to the roster by the minute; in the time it’s taken us to write this Newswire, the film has also added actors Nick Tarabay, Jimmy Gonzales, and Maurice Compte to its official cast list, too. Nolan is expected to start shooting the film—reportedly budgeted at a massive $250 million—some time this month, with reports emerging that he’s setting up to film in locations like Turkey, Morocco, and more. (Meanwhile, while we’re pulling called shots: If Bernthal ends up playing the cyclops Polythemus, someone owes us five bucks.)
[via Variety]
