“15 minutes of screen presence…”: Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey Adaptation Could Be Zendaya’s Biggest Career Challenge For 1 Sole Reason

SUMMARY

• Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is doubling down on Oppenheimer's star-studded nature.
• Shining out among the pack of major A-listers will be a major challenge for Zendaya.
• Zendaya doesn't entertain scripts where the characters don't scratch below the surface.

After dominating the summer and the Awards season last year, Christopher Nolan has announced his next feature, an adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey. Similar to his Oscar-winning Oppenheimer, which was heavily star-studded with the likes of RDJ, Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, and Florence Pugh, Nolan’s mythic action epic is loaded with industry veterans.

Zendaya, who is one of the several A-listers that have been confirmed for the movie so far, might experience her biggest challenge yet, given the film’s packed star cast, which stars some of the biggest names in showbiz.

Zendaya could silence her critics once and for all

Zendaya in Euphoria | Credit: HBO

While Zendaya‘s rise as one of the leading figures in Hollywood has been exponential, a portion of the internet is yet to be convinced of her chops as an actor. Although her performance as Rue in Euphoria and her recent acclaimed hits, Dune 2 and Challengers, serves as a testament to her abilities, considering it’s a Nolan film, she could finally settle the debate with this one.

But considering the cast currently involves, Charlize Theron, Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, and Anne Hathaway, standing out amidst them won’t be easy for the Euphoria star.

This may be his first bad movie

I can't wait until Hollywood's infatuation with Zendaya finally ends

Going by the story not expecting more than 15 minutes of screen presence of Zendaya

Although the star-studded cast might limit her screentime in the movie, given her stature in showbiz, Zendaya could very much steal the show in The Odyssey. As for what her role will be, fans will have to wait and see.

Zendaya doesn’t lean towards one-dimensional roles

Dune | Credit: Warner Bros.

It’s not hard to see why she’s currently one of the most celebrated stars in the business, as the Far From Home star has rarely missed her choices when it comes to script. When asked about how she approaches them, the actress confessed to turning down stories in which the character mostly serves as a stepping stone in the main lead’s journey, with no arc and growth of their own.

She added (via GQ):

It’s not necessarily that any of [the scripts] were bad or something like that… they usually feel very one-dimensional in the sense that there’s not a lot of layers to them, meaning they all seem very kind of like the same person over and over and over again. It would have been great and it would have been fine, but I wouldn’t have grown at all.

Her decision to prioritize quality has certainly worked out for the best, as the roles she has taken outside of the MCU have proven to be pretty intricate and nuanced, and the Emmy winner hasn’t failed to live up to them. Hopefully, this will be the case with Christopher Nolan‘s The Odyssey.

The Odyssey will hit theatres on 17 July 2026.

Written by Santanu Roy

Articles Published: 1992

Santanu Roy is a film enthusiast with a deep love for the medium of animation while also being obsessed with The Everly Brothers, Billy Joel, and The Platters. Having expertise in everything related to Batman, Santanu spends most of his time watching and learning films, with Martin Scorsese and Park Chan-wook being his personal favorites. Apart from pursuing a degree in animation, he also possesses a deep fondness for narrative-driven games and is currently a writer at Fandomwire with over 1500 articles.