Inside Tom Holland’s Wild Story of Zendaya’s ‘Odyssey’ Role
Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated, star-studded IMAX blockbuster The Odyssey is officially hitting theaters, and the behind-the-scenes stories coming from our favorite couple, Zendaya and Tom Holland, are pure gold.
If you thought their chemistry was unmatched on screen, wait until you hear how Tom casually played real-life messenger to drop the ultimate casting bombshell right in their living room.
The Ultimate “Husband Goals” Casting Delivery
It turns out we have Tom Holland to thank for Zendaya stepping into the sandals of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and warfare.
During the film’s press tour, Tom revealed that after he was cast as Telemachus (the son of Matt Damon’s Odysseus), director Christopher Nolan pulled him aside with a highly unusual, ultra-polite question:
“Would you be offended if I asked Zendaya to play Athena?”
Tom joked that he initially feared Nolan would ask him to wear shoe lifts to look taller. Once he realized the director was serious, Tom immediately took the script home to pull off a brilliant surprise.
Knowing Zendaya was already sneaking peeks over his shoulder to see what Nolan’s secret project was all about, Tom simply slid the pages over to her and told her to read it again. When she asked why, he gave her a hint: “Just read Athena really closely.”
Needless to say, the realization hit her, the corners of her mouth went up, and the two completely freaked out together.
Christopher Nolan Calls Zendaya “Perfect” (And Tom is Jealous!)
Working on a Christopher Nolan set is a dream for any actor, but Zendaya managed to achieve the near-impossible: earning rare, flawless praise from the visionary director himself.
During a promotional panel, the cast let slip that Nolan called Zendaya’s performance “perfect”—a compliment so rare it sparked a playful, friendly rivalry on set. Matt Damon joked that it became a daily topic of discussion, while Tom Holland cheekily chimed in that he’s still waiting for his own “perfect” review from Nolan.
Tom has been his wife’s biggest cheerleader throughout the entire process. He revealed that Interstellar is Zendaya’s favorite movie of all time, making this collaboration exceptionally sweet. He was even spotted supporting her on set during her most physically demanding scenes, including the massive Siege of Troy sequences.
She Literally Wore Wings to the Premiere
You can’t talk about Zendaya without talking about the fashion, and she absolutely understood the assignment for The Odyssey New York premiere.
Stepping out in a jaw-dropping, custom white gown adorned with dramatic, ethereal feathered wings, she looked like she had flown directly down from Mount Olympus. Tom kept things sleek and classic in an all-black suit, proudly stepping back to let his real-life goddess hold the spotlight.
The Odyssey is officially in theaters, boasting an absolutely stacked ensemble cast including Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, and Charlize Theron. But for us, the real magic will always be the incredible dynamic between Hollywood’s favorite power couple.
We already know that the presale tickets have shattered records globally. Want to read about the early box office predictions for ‘The Odyssey’?
