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John Leguizamo can't wait for you to see The Odyssey, but there's one thing he wants audiences to know before they do. "I hope you understand, I was aged up," he jokingly tells Seen on the Screen host Jacqueline Coley.
The actor isn't lying. He sat for three and a half hours in the makeup chair to play Eumaeus, Odysseus' most loyal servant and friend, in Christopher Nolan's latest epic, The Odyssey. "You gotta go to a zen place," he tells Coley. "[You've] got to leave your body and let them have it because you're not moving for three and a half hours." Needless to say, those hours spent were more than worth it to Leguizamo, as The Odyssey marks his first time working with Nolan. And, as he tells Coley, "To work with him was incredible."
Some audiences might be surprised to see Leguizamo taking on the classic dramatic role of Eumaeus. After all, the actor is best known for his more comedic-leaning stand-out performances in films like To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything!, Ice Age, and Moulin Rouge!, and he himself admits he's made a career playing oddballs. "I'm a Latin actor, so I had to be creative," he says. "I had to figure out my way into movies that didn't necessarily want me. So I was always doing the oddball character because it was the only opportuity to be in these movies as a Latin man."
Now, nearly 40 years into his career, Leguizamo is proud to be starring in Nolan's adaptation of the Greek epic, which features a diverse cast of actors, including Matt Damon, Zendaya, and Lupita Nyong'o. "I feel so seen in this movie because, you know, there's so many period pieces where Latin and Black people are erased, like we didn't exist," he says. "It's so beautiful to see yourself represented. It doesn't take anything away, it adds to it, it adds to the beauty and power."
Check out the full Seen on the Screen podcast episode above to hear Leguizamo talk about how he booked The Odyssey, working with IMAX cameras, and dish on some of his past roles. The Odyssey lands in theaters on July 17. Buy tickets now on Fandango.
Seen on the Screen is a Universal Entertainment and Fandango podcast series hosted by Jacqueline Coley, Awards Editor at Rotten Tomatoes.
Claim your ticket to witness the personal narratives happening behind the scenes of film and entertainment! Each episodes invites you into intimate conversations with filmmakers, actors, and industry insiders. Blending sharp cinematic trivia with thoughtfully crafted interview questions, Jacqueline leads each guest through a rich, reflective journey into their lifelong relationship with entertainment. From the formative movie-going experiences that shaped their artistic worldview to their career-defining moves — asking them to reflect on the films that have rocked their world, scared the daylights out of them, and changed them forever.
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