The Odyssey locks six acting Oscar campaign submissions

By James Calloway

Universal submitted six The Odyssey performers for acting Oscars: Matt Damon in Best Actor, three actors in Best Supporting Actor and two actresses in Best Supporting Actress. Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer is the Best Picture front-runner, and Gold Derby expects it to contend in nearly every eligible Academy Award category. Universal’s complete list contains 16 category submissions, matching the nomination total that Sinners set earlier this year. The Odyssey features a cast of thousands, but the studio narrowed its individual acting campaign to six names.

Who made the individual acting cut?

Gold Derby confirmed the final performer slate and the omissions. Damon serves as Universal’s sole Best Actor submission.

• Best Actor: Matt Damon as Odysseus.
• Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway as Penelope and Samantha Morton as Circe.
• Best Supporting Actor: Tom Holland as Telemachus, Robert Pattinson as Antinous and John Leguizamo as Eumaeus.

Universal treated Damon, Hathaway and Holland as unavoidable campaign choices because their roles—Odysseus, Penelope and Telemachus—form the family at the center of Homer’s tale.

Who was left out of the Oscar acting race?

Outside the campaign slate are Zendaya as Athena, Charlize Theron as Calypso, Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy/Clytemnestra, Jon Bernthal as Menelaus, Elliot Page as Sinon and Himesh Patel as Eurylochus. Gold Derby expects most of the omitted actors to join ensemble submissions at the Actor Awards and Critics Choice, keeping them visible during the awards cycle.

How did Hathaway’s placement change the race?

Had Hathaway entered Best Actress, Universal could have put Theron or Zendaya into supporting alongside Morton. Instead, it kept Hathaway in supporting, where she immediately vaulted to the top position in Gold Derby’s odds. Keeping Hathaway in supporting also spared Universal the tougher Best Actress race with Julianne Moore for The Debut, which the studio avoided to strengthen Hathaway’s supporting campaign.

Can The Odyssey break the Oscar nomination record?

Gold Derby predicts The Odyssey for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, both supporting acting races and Adapted Screenplay. The prediction assumes every one of the 16 listed categories lands, producing six nominations from the major branches and another 10 from craft branches to match the record. Gold Derby’s record scenario requires 10-for-10 in the craft categories, alongside those six major-category nominations. One or two additional performers in either supporting race would lift The Odyssey beyond Sinners in the Academy record books. Sinners established the 16-nomination benchmark earlier this year, while Gold Derby identifies The Odyssey as the likeliest challenger.

What did Universal submit across all 16 categories?

The complete campaign slate distributes 16 categories across six major branches and 10 craft branches, and each name targets the Academy branch where Universal submitted it.

• Best Picture: Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan, as producers.
• Best Director: Christopher Nolan.
• Best Actor: Matt Damon.
• Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway and Samantha Morton.
• Best Supporting Actor: Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson and John Leguizamo.
• Best Adapted Screenplay: Christopher Nolan, based on Homer’s Odyssey.
• Best Cinematography: Hoyte van Hoytema.
• Best Film Editing: Jennifer Lame.
• Best Casting: John Papsidera.
• Best Production Design: Ruth De Jong, production designer, and Larry Dias, set decorator.
• Best Costume Design: Ellen Mirojnick.
• Best Makeup and Hair Styling: Luisa Abel, Gloria Casny, Conor O’Sullivan and Rox Hodenfield.
• Best Original Score: Ludwig Göransson.
• Best Original Song: “When I’m Home,” by James Blake, Ludwig Göransson and Travis Scott.
• Best Sound: Willie Burton, Craig Henighan, Gary A. Rizzo and Kevin O’Connell.
• Best Visual Effects: Andrew Jackson, Andrew Lockley, Giacomo Mineo and Scott R. Fisher.

Nolan appears in three submissions—Best Picture, Best Director and Adapted Screenplay—while Ludwig Göransson appears twice, for Original Score and Original Song.