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- Mitsotakis praised the film’s interpretation of the nearly 3,000-year-old epic during a video call announced by his office on Tuesday.
- He said productions like The Odyssey connect Greece’s cultural heritage with contemporary creativity and introduce classical stories to new audiences.
- Mitsotakis also highlighted the film’s commercial success and thanked Nolan for filming a significant part of the production in Greece.
- The Odyssey has grossed more than $660 million worldwide, with Greek locations including Voidokilia beach, Methoni Castle, Nestor’s Cave and Acrocorinth.
The Greek prime minister praised Christopher Nolan for bringing Homer’s epic to a worldwide audience, highlighting the film’s box-office success and the decision to shoot a significant part of the production in Greece.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has congratulated Christopher Nolan on his cinematic adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey, thanking the acclaimed director for renewing global interest in ancient Greek civilisation.
Mitsotakis spoke with Nolan by video call on Monday afternoon, praising his interpretation of the nearly 3,000-year-old epic and its journey from one of the foundations of Western literature to the modern cinema screen. The conversation was announced by the Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday.
The prime minister said productions such as The Odyssey helped connect Greece’s rich cultural inheritance with contemporary creativity, introducing classical stories to audiences who may never previously have encountered Homer’s work.
He also highlighted the film’s considerable commercial success and expressed his appreciation that a significant part of the production had been filmed in Greece.
Released internationally on 16 July, The Odyssey has rapidly become one of the year’s largest cinematic successes. The film has now taken more than $660 million worldwide, following a particularly strong second weekend at the box office.
Much of the Greek filming took place in the Peloponnese, with locations including Voidokilia beach, Methoni Castle, Nestor’s Cave and Acrocorinth. The Hellenic Film Commission worked with Universal Pictures and Nolan’s production company, Syncopy, from the project’s early stages, providing guidance and assistance for the Greek shoot.
The use of authentic Greek landscapes gave the country a visible role in a production filmed across several nations. Nolan’s wider shoot lasted 91 days and took the cast and crew to locations including Greece, Italy, Morocco, Iceland and Scotland, using real coastlines, ships and challenging outdoor settings to give the mythological journey a physical sense of scale.
Starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, the film follows the king of Ithaca on his long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War. Its ensemble cast also includes Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Zendaya as Athena, Charlize Theron, Robert Pattinson and Lupita Nyong’o. It is the first feature film to have been shot entirely on IMAX film.
Nolan has said his aim was to create a film that could work both for viewers deeply familiar with Homer and for those encountering the story for the first time. Adapting the poem, he explained, required restructuring parts of the narrative while attempting to remain faithful to its spirit rather than reproducing it line by line.
That approach reflects the point emphasised by Mitsotakis: that Greece’s ancient stories remain alive not simply because they are preserved, but because successive generations continue to reinterpret them.
For Greece, the success of The Odyssey offers more than international exposure for its scenery. It places Homer’s work once again at the centre of global popular culture, bringing an ancient tale of war, endurance, identity and homecoming to millions of cinema-goers around the world.
Also read: Ancient Cyprus sarcophagus depicts scene from the Odyssey
