Why Eumaeus In Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey Looks So Familiar

Something that's genuinely exciting about Christopher Nolan's take on "The Odyssey" — well, one of many exciting things, to be honest — is that Nolan is bringing some new faces into the fray. I don't necessarily mean "new" actors as in complete unknowns here; what I mean is that, alongside regular Nolan players and previous collaborators like Anne Hathaway, Elliot Page, and James Remar, new bombshells are entering the proverbial Nolan villa. Indeed, the Oscar-winning director's adaptation of the Greek epic poem attributed to Homer features phenomenal performers like Lupita Nyong'o, Tom Holland, and the venerated performer John Leguizamo in key roles as well.

Leguizamo portrays Eumaeus, a friend and ally to the story's titular hero Odysseus (Matt Damon) who provides counsel and aid to his troubled buddy while also working as a blind swineherd. As Leguizamo himself told Polygon, he was surprised by the "no phones" ban Nolan famously employs on his film sets. All the same, he said his experience making this grueling movie in various locales (like Greece and Morocco) felt truly collaborative. As he recalled:

"The pace that he goes at is intense. He's there with you. He is behind the camera, where all directors should be, because that's where you can see an actor's soul, from that length. And he's in the elements, man. If it's freezing, he's freezing. If you're in a windstorm, he's in that windstorm. You never feel alone. He's always protecting you."

So, where have you seen Leguizamo before? Honestly, I think the better question is: Where haven't you seen Leguizamo before? From fantastical love stories to a recent biting satire and a searing look at a real-life miscarriage of justice, here's why Eumaeus from "The Odyssey" looks familiar.

Let me get this out of the way, because I know we have some huge fans of this particular movie on staff: John Leguizamo very famously appeared in the live-action "Super Mario Bros." movie adaptation in 1993, which helped put him on the map as a performer. Since then, though, he's spent most of his career displaying his considerable range. Across two collaborations with Baz Luhrmann, Leguizamo gave two radically different performances — bringing a snarling Tybalt to life in "Romeo + Juliet" (the film that ushered in the era of "Cool Shakespeare") and portraying real Parisian artist Toulouse Lautrec with sensitivity and empathy in the frantic and emotional jukebox musical "Moulin Rouge!" That alone proves that he can play just about anything.

To go back even further, Leguizamo got his start on both the big and small screen in the 1980s — his first credited TV appearance was on "Miami Vice" and his first film was the 1984 dark comedy "Mixed Blood" — and has really never stopped working. More so, aside from his fruitful collaborations with Luhrmann, Leguizamo has appeared in everything from "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar" (which earned him a Golden Globe nod for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture) to a movie adaptation of "Love in the Time of Cholera" to "The Lincoln Lawyer" and even the "John Wick" franchise. Leguizamo has also lent his extremely recognizable voice to critters in the Eddie Murphy-led "Doctor Dolittle" films and the animated "Ice Age" movies. (In the latter, he voices the ground sloth Sid.)

At a certain point, it would probably take me less time to list the movies and TV shows in which John Leguizamo does not appear; this Swiss army knife of an actor is really in just about everything, and it's always a delight to see him show up. On the big screen, you've probably seen Leguizamo in projects like the Santa Claus action flick "Violent Night" and the teen romance film "The Sun is Also a Star." In "The Menu" (in a role that actually nearly went to "Harry Potter" veteran Daniel Radcliffe until Leguizamo took it on), he portrays a wealthy movie star (his real name, canonically, is George Diaz, but he's credited as "The Movie Star") who, alongside his beleaguered assistant, Felicity Lynn (Aimee Carrero), dines at a restaurant belonging to the vengeful master chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes). To say he meets a wonderfully bitted end is ... an understatement. He even continued his voice work of late by playing the Bruno that nobody wants to talk about in the Madrigal family from "Encanto."

As far as Leguizamo's television work is concerned, he's kept equally busy. Most notably, he wrote and performed his acclaimed show "Latin History for Morons" as a stand-up special for Netflix in 2018, and one year later, he played a supporting role in "When They See Us," Ava DuVernay's series about the Exonerated Five (formerly referred to as the Central Park Five). Leguizamo has even popped up in buzzy projects like "The Power" and "Smoke," and it feels like we won't see this guy slowing down any time soon ... which is great news for people who like good acting.

"The Odyssey" hits theaters on July 17, 2026.