Published by Cel Manero from Global One Media Inc.
To portray Odysseus in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming adaptation, the actor shed more than 30 pounds by eliminating gluten from his diet.
Matt Damon revealed that he returned to his “high school” weight to take on the role of the legendary Greek hero Odysseus in the eagerly awaited film The Odyssey.
The 55-year-old actor reunites with director Christopher Nolan, marking another collaboration following their work together on Interstellar and Oppenheimer. The upcoming movie is Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s classic epic poem.
Speaking on Travis and Jason Kelce’s podcast, New Heights, Damon discussed the intense physical transformation he underwent for the role, prompted by viral photos showing him in remarkable shape on set.
“Yeah, I was in really good shape,” Damon said. “I lost a lot of weight.”
He explained that Nolan had a specific vision for Odysseus’s physique. “He said he wanted me lean but strong. It’s a weird thing,” Damon noted.
To achieve the transformation, Damon made a significant change to his diet. “I literally, just because of this other thing I did with my doctor, stopped eating gluten,” he shared. “I used to weigh between 185 and 200 pounds, and for this movie, I was 167 pounds.”
“That’s the lightest I’ve been since high school,” he added. “It took a lot of training and a very strict diet.”
Damon emphasized the importance of working with a personal trainer during such intense physical preparations. “Trainers are like, ‘What are we doing?’ They can guide you through anything. It’s all about having a clear goal and following it,” he said.
He compared the process to the rigorous routines of the Kelce brothers in the NFL. “When I do a physically demanding role, whether it’s Jason Bourne or this, it feels like a season,” he said. “It becomes part of your day, part of your job, and you build your schedule around it.”
Since filming, Damon has continued a gluten-free lifestyle. “I’m done—I’m gluten-free everything,” he said, joking about even trying a gluten-free beer. “It’s been so long since I’ve had gluten, I can’t tell if it’s good or not. But it’s working.”
Damon has previously undertaken extreme body transformations for roles. For the 1996 war drama Courage Under Fire, he lost 40 to 50 pounds in roughly 100 days to play a Persian Gulf veteran struggling with trauma and addiction.
Reflecting on that experience, he admitted it was dangerous. “I went too far. I got sick, and a doctor told me I could have permanently shrunk my heart. I wouldn’t do that again,” Damon said.
Still, he acknowledged that the intense physical toll contributed to the authenticity of the performance. “It helped the performance because I didn’t have to act at all—I was a wreck. I had dizzy spells and hot flashes, and I didn’t tell anyone for a while because I was afraid I might be seriously ill,” he explained.
