Matt Damon underwent a “complete lifestyle change” to achieve the remarkable body transformation required to play the titular role in The Odyssey.
On Tuesday, Damon and director Christopher Nolan appeared on the Good Hang with Amy Poehler podcast to promote the film. During the interview, Nolan revealed that the actor had thought he would no longer need to be asked to flaunt his muscles at his age.
Nolan recalled a conversation he had with Damon about the actor’s decision to get bicep tattoos: “[Matt] said to me, ‘Well, if I would be perfectly honest, I thought my bare bicep days were over.’”
But playing a Greek king and warrior required Damon to show off his physique, upper arms included.
Matt Damon said he thought his “bare bicep days were over” before he started filming “The Odyssey.”
Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pic/Melinda Sue Gordon
The difference has been particularly eye-catching as Damon promotes the summer blockbuster. At the after-party of The Odyssey‘s London premiere on July 7, he arrived at the members-only Oswald’s club looking slim with a goatee and chiseled jawline.
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Matt Damon attends the after-party of “The Odyssey” at Oswald’s club in Mayfair on July 7, 2026, in London.
Ricky Vigil M / Justin E Palmer/GC Images
In the same interview with Amy Poehler, Damon explained that he underwent lifestyle updates, including eating less. One of the most significant dietary changes was eliminating gluten from his diet.
Matt Damon attends a red-carpet event in 2021 (left); the actor appears ripped and weary in character as Odysseus in “The Odyssey” (right).
Yara Nardi/Reuters;Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pic
“It completely changed my life these last couple of years,” Damon noted.
Matt Damon grew a beard for his role as Odysseus. Pictured here in May 2024 and in March 2025.
Andrew Kelly/Reuters;Michael Buckner/Getty Images
He added that although quitting gluten was a “bummer” because he enjoyed bread, beer, pasta, and pizza, he now feels better and continues to follow his pre-production diet.
In January, the Oscar-winning actor told NFL players Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce on their New Heights podcast that he dropped over 20 pounds for the role—a change evident in both his figure and his face. The latter is now noticeably narrower and sharper, particularly along the chin and neck.
On left, Matt Damon attends the Met Gala in May 2024; on right, a noticeably thinner Damon appears at a red-carpet event in June 2026, after filming “The Odyssey.”
“I used to walk around at between 185 and 200 [pounds], and I did that whole movie at 167,” Damon said. “And I haven’t been that light since high school. So it was a lot of training and a really strict diet.”
Matt Damon (center) said he had to be intentional about everything he ate while preparing for his role as Odysseys.
Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pic/Melinda Sue Gordon
On Tuesday, Damon told Extra that he had to be intentional about “every single decision of every piece of food I put in my body, every hour of sleep I got.”
Damon compared working on the film to working as a professional athlete, saying, “It’s not an eight-hour-a-day job. It’s a 24-hour-a-day job.”
Although Damon gave up the character’s long beard after filming, he told the outlet that he has maintained a similar physique.
Matt Damon gave up his beard after filming. Pictured here at the “The Odyssey” world premiere in London, Britain, on July 6, 2026.
Isabel Infantes/Isabel Infantes/Reuters
Damon said Nolan told him that his character should be “lean but strong,” and they aimed for a shape that would appear “capable” but “could use a meal if it was offered.”
After the filming, he said his goal is to continue looking “capable, but like I’m well fed.”
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