Christopher Nolan Was Hired to Direct ‘Troy’ More Than 20 Years Before ‘The Odyssey’; He Says the Studio Backtracked and Offered ‘Batman Begins’ as ‘Consolation Prize’

Christopher Nolan confirmed to Empire Magazine (via World of Reel) that Warner Bros. originally hired him to direct its swords-and-sandals epic “Troy,” more than two decades before Nolan would mount his adaptation of Homer’s “The Odyssey.” The events depicted in the former movie factor into the latter, which is why the Oscar winner told the publication mounting his film version of “The Odyssey” did not come out of nowhere despite some fans being surprised Nolan would want to tackle Homer’s Greek epic.

“I was originally hired by Warner Bros. to direct ‘Troy.’ Wolfgang had developed it, and so when the studio decided not to proceed with his superhero movie [‘Batman Vs Superman’], he wanted it back,” Nolan said. “At the end of the day, it was a world that I was very interested to explore. So it’s been at the back of my mind for a very long time. Certain images, particularly. How I wanted to handle the Trojan horse, things like that.”

Wolfgang Peterson was fresh off the box office hits “Air Force One” and “The Perfect Storm” when he pivoted away from “Troy” and into the superhero space with his own take on “Batman v Superman” for Warner Bros. Nolan had successfully jumped from “Memento” into the Hollywood studio space by helming Warner Bros.’ 2002 thriller “Insomnia.” The studio wanted to keep Nolan in house with “Troy.” In an ironic twist of fate, Nolan told Empire that Warner Bros. took back “Troy” to give to Peterson and then offered Nolan “Batman Begins” as a “consolation prize.”

Peterson’s “Troy” ended up starring Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom and Diane Kruger. The movie opened to mixed reviews in summer 2004 but earned nearly $500 million worldwide. Nolan’s “Batman Begins” arrived the following summer and launched what would become one of Warner Bros.’ most acclaimed and financially successful film trilogies.

With the upcoming “The Odyssey,” Nolan is finally getting to fulfill his dream of bringing the Trojan war to the big screen. The movie stars Matt Damon in the lead role of Odysseus. Tom Holland plays his son, Telemachus. The sprawling ensemble also includes Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Jon Bernthal.

“As a filmmaker, you’re looking for gaps in cinematic culture, things that haven’t been done before,” Nolan also told Empire magazine about why he chose to turn Homer’s “Odyssey” into a movie. “And what I saw is that all of this great mythological cinematic work that I had grown up with – Ray Harryhausen movies and other things – I’d never seen that done with the sort of weight and credibility that an A-budget and a big Hollywood, IMAX production could do.”

“The Odyssey” is set for release on July 17, 2026, from Universal Pictures.