[Photo &] Christopher Nolan Makes His First Trip to Korea With New Film “Odyssey”… “I Fell in Love With Korean Salt Bread and Baseball” — Press Event With Charlize Theron and Matt Damon

The world-renowned auteur Christopher Nolan stepped onto Korean soil with Hollywood A-listers Matt Damon and Charlize Theron, bringing their new film Odyssey with them. Their Korea visit, set in motion ahead of a domestic release on May 5, has drawn attention as a special move that goes beyond the usual kind of promotion. Making his first trip to Korea, Nolan savored the ambience along the Hangang River and enjoyed Korean salt bread. Damon, returning after 10 years, experienced firsthand the intense energy of South Korean professional baseball. A major production that is the first in film history to be captured in IMAX film for its full running time, the movie is already upending the global theatrical landscape after surpassing $900 million in revenue in North America.

Nolan’s first trip to Korea leaves him captivated by the Hangang’s shimmering reflections and Korean salt bread

Christopher Nolan, widely regarded as one of the finest living filmmakers, did not hide his overwhelming feelings at a press conference in Seoul held at the Four Seasons Hotel on May 3. “For a long time, I’ve wanted to bring my work to Korea,” he said, adding, “That my film is loved in a country I’ve never known—that’s a miraculous and deeply moving experience.”

As if to make up for the disappointment of his earlier Korea trip, which was derailed by the pandemic when Tenet was released in 2020, his satisfaction with this schedule reached a peak. Right after arriving on the 1st, he took a walk along the Hangang River and said, “I’ll never forget Seoul’s beautiful scenery and delicious salt bread,” before adding, “I want to experience the great city of Seoul even more deeply amid the passionate welcome from fans.” Nolan has produced blockbuster hits such as the “The Dark Knight” trilogy, as well as Inception, Interstellar, and Dunkirk, and is the singular director who swept seven awards at the U.S. Academy Awards with his previous work, Oppenheimer.

A revolution in film history—the $900 million myth brought to life with a 100% IMAX film

New film Odyssey is a grand spectacle that brings to the screen Homer’s ancient Greek epic, The Odyssey. It vividly dramatizes the treacherous journey of Odysseus (played by Matt Damon), the hero of the Trojan War, as he returns to his home of Ithaca.

In particular, the film made a historic, first-of-its-kind attempt to shoot the entire running time with IMAX film cameras. Woven together with an overwhelming visual scale and a majestic soundscape, the movie is sparking a strange phenomenon in global theaters—even amid rampant scalping. After its North American release on April 17, it recorded a mega-hit of $900 million (about 1.2 trillion won), placing it at the center of a box-office surge.

Nolan said, “Even without any knowledge of the original work, anyone can get swept up in this intense adventure,” stressing the necessity of watching the movie in theaters. “The collective catharsis that theaters deliver is irreplaceable,” he added. “I hope audiences experience the vivid texture as if they’re standing together on the deck as the Cyclops’s cave opens up—or as rough waves crash.”

“The K-baseball fever that shook Gocheok Dome”… Matt Damon returns after 10 years

Hollywood’s symbol Matt Damon, who landed the title role, reunited with Korean fans exactly 10 years after Jason Bourne in 2016. The most attention-grabbing part of his trip to Korea was his visit to a baseball stadium. On the 1st, he went to Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul and watched Kiwoom Heroes take on SSG Landers in person while wearing a Kiwoom Heroes uniform.

Damon said, “I wanted to hear the rumors about the dynamism of Korean professional baseball and confirm it for myself,” adding, “The explosive energy that filled the cheering section and the fierce fan spirit were a marvelous experience—different from Major League Baseball in the United States.”

He also expressed deep satisfaction with his first ensemble with director Nolan. “The moment I received Nolan’s love call, I instinctively knew it would become the peak of my acting career,” he said. “The scene in which hundreds of staff members pour their grit into pushing toward a single goal was a great journey that even made you forget how tiring it was.”

The appeal of noki-gak and K-beauty—Hollywood top stars get captivated

Producer Emma Thomas also made clear her special affection for Korea, along with Charlize Theron, who plays the enchanting goddess Calypso that blocks Odysseus’s return.

Theron, who had visited Korea personally with her daughter just a few months earlier, said, “I deeply love Korea’s dynamic culture and the warmth of its people,” and she could not hide her excitement at the back-to-back trips to Korea. Regarding working with director Nolan, she said, “Even though it’s a huge-scale blockbuster, the set was surprisingly intimate and full of a sense of bond.”

Emma Thomas, Nolan’s lifelong partner and a cinematic persona of sorts, appeared at the press conference wearing noki-gak, a Korean traditional ornamental accessory, around her waist and received a burst of flash photography.

She smiled brightly and said, “Bringing my husband along to visit Olive Young and experience K-beauty was an amazing time,” adding that she enjoyed soaking up the culture by covering essential Korean stops, including a “salt bread tour” passed down by her son, who is a Korean-American.

Opens in Korea on May 5—The start of a grand epic that overwhelms the screen

Changing the paradigm of theaters around the world with an overwhelming cinematic experience, film Odyssey will finally lift the veil through screens across Korea on May 5.