Academy Award-winning filmmaker Christopher Nolan on Wednesday showcased extended footage from his upcoming epic The Odyssey at CinemaCon 2026, offering exhibitors a first glimpse of the much-anticipated film ahead of its July 17 theatrical release.

“The Odyssey is a story that has fascinated generation after generation for 3,000 years,” the Associated Press quoted Nolan. “It’s not a story, it’s the story.”

The footage included a sequence featuring the arrival of the Trojan Horse and a tense nighttime infiltration of the city of Troy, described by Jon Bernthal’s Menelaus as “the story of the horse.”

The film is the first motion picture to be shot entirely on IMAX film using newly developed cameras that reduce operational noise, a long-held ambition for Nolan.

Headlined by Matt Damon as Odysseus, the film also stars Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Zendaya as Athena and Robert Pattinson as Antinous.

“It’s always been a film, first and foremost, about this idea of family, this idea of homecoming,” Nolan said, adding that the film is nearly complete.

The Odyssey is Nolan’s first feature directorial since Oppenheimer, which won best picture and best director at the Oscars in 2024.

The footage was showcased during Universal Pictures’ presentation at CinemaCon, where the studio also highlighted upcoming titles including a new Minions film and Steven Spielberg’s alien movie Disclosure Day.

“I’m just really glad not to be following Steven Spielberg,” Nolan said.

Universal currently has the year’s biggest box office hit with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which has earned over USD 631 million worldwide within 15 days of release. According to NBCUniversal Entertainment chairperson Donna Langley the film is on track to cross the USD 1 billion mark.