You gotta give it up where it's due - Matt Damon reveals why he needed a female stunt double for 'The Odyssey'

A few of Matt Damon's scenes in The Odyssey were actually filmed with a female stunt performer standing in for the actor. And he is making sure she gets the credit she deserves. As many know, the actor underwent a dramatic physical transformation to play the role of the Greek hero Odysseus in Christopher Nolan's film. 

But despite taking on most of the physically demanding scenes himself, a handful of shots required a female stunt performer to step in. Now, the actor has finally revealed why she was chosen for those scenes. 

During a recent interview on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Matt Damon revealed that one of the scenes in The Odyssey involving Odysseus' crew's encounter with the Laestrygonians required stunt performers to create the illusion of a massive height difference. The production achieved this by placing a 5-foot stunt performer in front of 7-foot-tall stunt men. The person chosen to stand in for Damon was a female stunt performer.  

"There were these stunt men who were all seven feet,” he said. 

“And then they got stuntmen who were under five feet, and so my double was a woman, a female stunt performer, who had the greatest arms I’ve ever seen,” he further said.

“So there are those shots in the movie where you see these giants looming over me, and so it was almost 100 percent my arms in the movie, but you gotta give it up where it’s due,” he admitted.

Damon admitted that while most of the scene featured him on screen, there were a few shots where the stunt performer's muscular arms were visible. He made sure to give her the credit she deserved. The actor recalled meeting her in the catering tent during filming and later giving her a hug to thank her for her contribution.

After all, without the stunt performer, director Christopher Nolan would not have been able to create the illusion. But her work was only one part of the sequence. Damon also had to undergo a dramatic physical transformation, shedding a significant amount of weight to play Odysseus.

While stunt performers can help actors pull off some of a film's most challenging scenes, not every aspect of a role has a shortcut. For The Odyssey, Matt Damon had to do the hard work himself, shedding nearly 30 pounds to transform into the battle-worn Greek hero, Odysseus.

The actor followed a strict diet, made even more challenging by his gluten allergy, to achieve the lean physique required for the role. The dramatic weight loss was essential to portraying a warrior worn down by years of battles and a long, grueling journey home. Damon's co-stars have also spoken about how impressed they were by his commitment to the transformation. Beyond the physical change, his dedication adds authenticity to the emotional weight of the character and the story.

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Did you know why The Odyssey brought a female stunt performer for Matt Damon? Let us know in the comments.