The following article is an excerpt from the new edition of “IndieWire’s The Lead Up,” a weekly newsletter in which our Awards Editor Marcus Jones takes readers on the awards trail, interviewing key figures responsible for some of the most compelling stories of the season, and offering predictions on who will win. Subscribe here to receive the newsletter in your inbox each week.
As someone who could not get a ticket to “The Odyssey” in IMAX 70mm until 11 p.m. on the Sunday night of opening weekend, it’s no surprise that the latest adaptation of Homer’s epic became Christopher Nolan‘s biggest global debut so far, grossing $264 million.
Stemming from that box office success, and this being the Academy Award-winning director’s follow-up to Best Picture winner “Oppenheimer,” we can easily plant the flag that “The Odyssey” is already a formidable Oscar contender.
However, I wouldn’t call it the acting showcase that people may have expected, considering its all-star cast. Obviously, Matt Damon as Odysseus is undeniable. His endurance as an affable leading man, capable of keeping the audience on the side of a textually hubristic war general, is likely to at least earn him a third Best Actor nomination. But the rest of the cast is facing a more arduous journey toward being recognized by an awards body for their performances.
Though actors like Himesh Patel, Jon Bernthal, Lupita Nyong’o, Elliot Page, and Zendaya, who play figures that factor heavily into Odysseus’s journey, all have standout scenes, the cast members more likely to linger in the minds of Oscar voters are the ones stuck at home in Ithaca.
See, the film has a way of continually outdoing itself, so even while we’re blown away by the abject body horror of Samantha Morton’s Circe as she turns our hero’s troop into pigs, Nolan almost immediately outdoes himself with the mystifying underworld sequence. It’s an issue of serial position effect, where the parts best remembered are the beginning and the ending.
Therefore, I anticipate that what’s at home that counts. As Eumaeus, unwavering servant to Odysseus, John Leguizamo has the best shot for a Best Supporting Actor nomination. The energetic 65-year-old has been a pillar of the filmmaking community as one of the key voices advocating for more Latino representation in film and TV. There is enough awareness among voters to appreciate the veteran thespian playing against type as this sage figure who plays a crucial part in the third act.
Anne Hathaway, who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2013, could also be well on her way to another nomination in the category, as I’d argue that her Penelope is the most subversive take among prior ancient Greek adaptations. Is the film beating the allegations that Nolan’s female characters are too thinly written? Not really, but Hathaway brings forth a louder, tenacious side to the character that isn’t quite picked up in literary translations of the poem.
What’s most interesting about the awards campaign for “The Odyssey” is everything happening below the line. Nolan brought back nearly everyone he worked with behind the scenes on “Oppenheimer” who either won or was nominated for an Oscar, and across the board, their work plays an even bigger role in this film.
The retelling of the siege of Troy toward the end of the film is Best Editing winner Jennifer Lame’s best work, in my opinion. Although the camerawork isn’t as noticeably showy this time around, Best Cinematography winner Hoyte van Hoytema‘s stature as the first person to shoot an entire film on IMAX 70mm will score a lot of points among his peers.
Furthermore, Oscar nominees Ruth de Jong and Ellen Mirojnick exceed expectations with their production design and costume design, respectively, which some initially wrote off as too brutalist and minimal in the film’s previews. But shots of the Trojan horse or of Agamemnon’s helmet take up a large share of the iconography most discussed in complimentary conversations surrounding the film.
It reminds me of the awards campaign for “Sinners.” Along with the credit Ryan Coogler received as writer/director, the moment cemented his frequent collaborators like costume designer Ruth E. Carter, production designer Hannah Beachler, cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw, and composer Ludwig Göransson as the new class of master artisans — the ones top of mind for Oscar voters with every project they work on.
Coincidentally, Göransson has also become Nolan’s go-to composer, having earned his second Best Original Score Oscar for “Oppenheimer.” Having just won the category again for “Sinners,” one of the most compelling Oscar narratives coming out of “The Odyssey” opening weekend is whether or not the Swedish maestro is now bound for back-to-back Oscar wins.
It would be his fourth win in that category, all within one decade (his first Oscar win was for “Black Panther” in 2019), making it even more fair to dub him the John Williams of his generation. He’d be only one Oscar behind said 94-year-old composer (also in contention for Best Original Score this season for “Disclosure Day”).
Ultimately, “The Odyssey” has set a high bar for all other Oscar contenders coming out this year, with Christopher Nolan and his crew likely to receive nods in all the same categories as “Oppenheimer,” including Best Adapted Screenplay. But time will tell whether any stars other than Matt Damon are Oscar-bound, as legendary an ensemble as they may be.
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