Matt Damon has revealed the demanding conditions behind the making of Christopher Nolan’s upcoming epic The Odyssey, describing the production as feeling “more like an expedition than a movie” after filming across six countries.

Speaking to People, Damon reflected on the physically challenging shoot, which took the cast from rugged outdoor locations to specially designed studio sets.

Filming spanned six countries

Production on The Odyssey took place across Greece, Italy, Scotland, Iceland, Morocco and the United Kingdom, with Nolan opting to shoot extensively on location.

Damon praised the Oscar-winning director for enduring the same difficult conditions as the cast throughout filming.

“And if you were cold and wet, you just turned and you looked and Chris was just as cold and just as wet and going through it,” Damon said.

The actor noted that Nolan’s commitment helped motivate the cast during the demanding production.

Water tank scenes proved equally challenging

Although the cast expected filming at Universal Studios in Los Angeles to offer some relief after months of outdoor shoots, Damon said those hopes quickly disappeared.

“Every location was really difficult, but in a really different way,” he explained.

The actor recalled that the production concluded with sequences filmed inside a massive water tank at Universal.

“We knew we were ending at the water tank in Universal. And nobody said, ‘Well, it’ll probably be easier once we get to it,’” Damon said.

Instead, powerful jet engines were used to create enormous waves inside the controlled environment.

“There were these two jet engines, like 737 engines, blowing water on us. It was definitely about as hard as you can make water work in a controlled environment.”

Laughter after an exhausting production

Despite the gruelling conditions, Damon said the cast found moments of humour toward the end of filming.

He recalled shooting close-up scenes aboard a raft after wider shots had already been completed on open water because they were considered too dangerous.

“We were laughing at the end because we were shooting some close-up raft stuff that was too dangerous to do on the open water,” Damon said.

The actor joked that Nolan personally poured water over his face during one sequence.

“So we’d shot some wides, but we did some stuff on the tank that involved Chris pouring water over my face while I was lying there and I was like, ‘This is perfect. We’re ending this with water boarding,’” Damon said with a laugh.

About The Odyssey

Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic, starring Matt Damon as Odysseus alongside Tom Holland, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway and Robert Pattinson.

The highly anticipated film is scheduled to arrive in cinemas on July 17.