Christopher Nolan told Universal Pictures from the very start of production that his adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey would be rated R — or not made at all, the director revealed in an interview published Friday by Empire Magazine.
“I went to the studio at the very beginning and had a very honest conversation with them that we wanted to make the most intense version of The Odyssey,” Nolan said. He wanted the film to “feel visceral and modern” and cited the era’s weaponry as a key factor: “With the weapons of the time, they are more brutal — you’re talking about swords and bows and arrows and things like that. So I concluded pretty early that it would be pretty difficult and potentially compromising to make a PG-13 version of this story.”
In the Empire interview, Nolan said he wanted to embrace the brutality and sensuality of Homer’s text without compromise. The source material includes gory battles, nudity, mutilation, and revenge killings — and throughout the story, Odysseus has encounters with three different women, including Calypso, the goddess.
A Record-Setting Bet on Mature Storytelling
The Odyssey has been rated R by the Motion Picture Association. The film reportedly carries a budget of $250 million, which ranks it as perhaps the most expensive R-rated movie in history, topping the likes of Joker: Folie à Deux and Deadpool & Wolverine. Universal, which partnered with Nolan on Oppenheimer, is distributing the film, which opens July 17.
The R rating comes only three years after Oppenheimer became Nolan’s first R-rated movie in over 20 years — the last time being 2002’s Insomnia — making The Odyssey only the fourth film in Nolan’s career to receive the designation. Though Nolan’s first three films were all rated R, his next eight were all rated PG-13; Oppenheimer broke that trend and grossed nearly $1 billion worldwide.
The Odyssey is also the first feature shot entirely with IMAX 70mm film cameras. The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, the Greek king of Ithaca, and chronicles his long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War as he attempts to reunite with his wife, Penelope, portrayed by Anne Hathaway. The ensemble cast also includes Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron.
Tickets for IMAX 70mm screenings went on sale and quickly sold out, with demand on Thursday leading to long waits for online ticketing. Nolan’s previous film, Oppenheimer, was an instant success that won Best Picture at the Academy Awards, setting considerable expectations for his follow-up.
