The Odyssey Set Photos Reveal First Look At Zendaya's Mystery Character

Slowly, but surely, the star-studded cast of Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" is being caught on camera, yet we're still none the wiser about who most of them are playing. Aside from Matt Damon portraying the ancient hero Odysseus, King of Ithaca, on his 10-year journey home from the Trojan War, we still don't know who's fighting for or against the legendary leader. So far, we've seen a bald yet incredibly beardy Jon Bernthal, as well as set photos of Tom Holland in costume, donning leather-like armor and arm guards (presumably to take on the role of Odysseus' son, Themelicus). Now the latest cast member to be caught on camera is Zendaya, who has been seen pottering around on set (via @ChrisNolanMedia on X). Once again, though, the photos give us little to no indication of who she's playing here.

(You can check out those photos for yourself right here.)

With her hair up and wearing a white full-length dress, the "Dune" and "Challengers" star can be seen standing among the members of the "Odyssey" crew (as well as curled up on a pebbly shore) in-between takes. There's really not enough to deduce what part she'll inhabit, although that doesn't mean we can't speculate that there might be a more ethereal element to her role given the characters she's most likely to be playing in this story.

"The Odyssey" is all about Odysseus' lengthy trek home to his wife Penelope and their family, but there's no telling just who will be playing her. The obvious guess would be that Anne Hathaway (who previously worked with Nolan on "The Dark Knight Rises" and one of his best films, "Interstellar") will be the one waiting for her heroic hubby to make his way back from a journey that's quite literally left up to the gods in the movie. In Zendaya's case, however, there are a handful of other potential characters she could be portraying, all of whom play a valuable part in Homer's road trip story to end all road trip stories.

Given Zendaya's surroundings in these set photos, she could be playing Nausicaa, the daughter of Alcinous and Arete and princess of Phaeacians, who finds Odysseus when he washes up on her homeland's shores. Alternatively, she could be portraying Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war who comes to Odysseus every so often to point him in the right direction (and, as is often the case in Greek myths, simply appears in regular threads rather than godly attire mortals would expect someone like her to be in).

There's also the side-switching sorceress Circe, who initially turns Odysseus' men into pigs after they rock up on the island of Aeaea, only to apologize for the big mix-up and send our hero and his crew on their way. For now, we'll have to leave it to the gods and Nolan to decide. 

"The Odyssey" arrives in theaters on July 17, 2026.