Matt Damon recalls gruelling final days of filming 'The Odyssey', says shoot felt like an expedition

Los Angeles, July 17

Speaking to People, Damon, who plays Odysseus in the epic adaptation of the ancient Greek myth, said the film's globe-trotting shoot took the cast across Greece, Morocco, Iceland, Scotland and Italy.

"It really felt more like an expedition than a movie," Damon said.

"And if you were cold and wet, you just turned and you looked and Chris was just as cold and just as wet and going through it," he added, referring to director Christopher Nolan.

Despite wrapping up filming at a water tank at Universal Studios in Los Angeles, Damon said the challenges did not become any easier.

"Every location was really difficult, but in a really different way," he said.

"We knew we were ending at the water tank in Universal. And nobody said, 'Well, it'll probably be easier once we get to it,'" Damon added.

He recalled that the controlled environment proved just as intense as the outdoor locations.

"And sure enough, there were these two jet engines, like 737 engines, blowing water on us. It was definitely about as hard as you can make water work in a controlled environment," he said, according to People.

As production neared its end, Damon said some scenes became unintentionally humorous because of their intensity.

"We were laughing at the end because we were shooting some close up raft stuff that was too dangerous to do on the open water. So we'd shot some wides, but we did some stuff on the tank that involved Chris pouring water over my face while I was lying there and I was like, 'This is perfect. We're ending this with water boarding,'" Damon said with a laugh.

The actor also said the film helped him overcome some of his fears.

"I worked through a lot of them on this one, definitely," he said.

"Claustrophobia was one, but I hope I'm on the other side of that one now," Damon added.

Reflecting on the overall experience, Damon called the project one of the most rewarding of his career.

"You could not look in any direction and not see somebody just giving everything they had for this kind of common project," he said, adding that the cast and crew shared a sense of accomplishment at the end of every week.

Director Christopher Nolan also praised the cast for embracing the film's demanding production.

"I like to say it was a hard shoot, but hard in the right way," Nolan said, according to People.

Speaking about the ensemble cast, which includes Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya and Charlize Theron, Nolan added, "They rose to it magnificently."

Despite the physical challenges, Damon said he cherished every moment of making the film.

"I had such a feeling of gratitude," he said, according to People.

"It was the best experience I've ever had because everybody on the set was experienced enough to know that the movie required everybody to be completely maxing out and straining against what they thought was possible and what they'd done before," Damon added.

'The Odyssey' is in theatres.

— ANI