Hollyood star Tom Holland says his theatre background helped him tackle IMAX filming, calling the challenge of The Odyssey both demanding and rewarding
No amount of preparation could have readied Tom Holland for the scale of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. The actor revealed his first visit to the set — even though he wasn’t scheduled to shoot — left the deepest impression on him. “I remember we were in Morocco and I walked over the brow of this sand dune and it felt more like I had gone back in time than I had walked onto a film set,” Holland said. What greeted him was not a typical shoot! Thousands of actors in period costume, hundreds of boats and horses stretched across the landscape.
“It felt less like a film production and more like history unfolding before your eyes,” he said. He was told to “just keep walking” until he found the crew, eventually spotting Nolan and Matt Damon at the centre of it all. “I just remember pinching myself and telling myself to drink this all in, because this is unlike anything that has ever been done before and probably ever again,” Holland added.
Beyond the spectacle, Holland believes audiences will connect with the film’s emotional core. “The scope and the scale doesn’t come at the behest of the emotion,” he said. While The Odyssey promises breathtaking action, he said it never loses sight of its characters and Odysseus’ journey home! Musing on his role as Telemachus, Holland said the character’s search for identity resonated most. “It’s the original coming-of-age tale,” he said. The actor also spoke about the challenge of performing for IMAX cameras, which demands precision from both cast and crew. His recent theatre stint helped, he said, because every take carries weight. “Pressure is a privilege,” Holland said.
“The responsibility of bringing such an ambitious film to life only strengthened my commitment to the role.” For Holland, The Odyssey is more than an epic adventure. It’s a celebration of cinema — designed to deliver both spectacle and intimacy.
