The 97th Academy Awards dazzled Hollywood recently, with Anora sweeping five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Sean Baker. Host Conan O’Brien cracked jokes, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo delivered show-stopping performances, and stars like Mikey Madison (Best Actress) and Adrien Brody (Best Actor) lit up the Dolby Theatre. But fans could not ignore the elephant in the room: Where were Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, and other A-listers? The Internet quickly pieced together a hilariously unexpected theory, and it all points to Christopher Nolan.

Hollywood’s blockbuster provocateur, Christopher Nolan, is directing The Odyssey, and a fan named @bobgoochman is convinced that his star-studded cast had no time for the Oscars. The cast of the film, Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, and Anne Hathaway, were all absent from the ceremony and per the fan, they seem to be deep into filming the blockbuster in Marrakech, Morocco. Social media exploded with memes about Nolan holding actors hostage and jokes that the Oscars' red carpet looked like a Greek tragedy without its usual star power.

With a July 2026 release date looming, the film reimagines Odysseus’ decade-long quest home post-Trojan War, complete with Cyclops battles, Siren encounters, and Penelope’s political battles. Nolan’s obsession with practical effects- think real ships and Moroccan deserts instead of green screens- explains the grueling shoot. The project is as massive as its $250 million budget suggests and apparently, so demanding as per the fans that even Oscar night could not pry its cast away.

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Social media exploded faster than a Nolan plot twist and as the theory gained traction, fans turned detective and the verdict was unanimous: Nolan’s Odyssey ate the Oscars.

The Internet erupted as fans united behind a single truth: defying Christopher Nolan was impossible. Supporters argued it made perfect sense: if anyone could prioritize ancient Greek epics over Hollywood’s biggest night, it was Nolan. The theory ignited social media, with memes painting Nolan as a modern-day Cyclops guarding his star-studded cast in a Moroccan fortress. Fans argued that his legendary perfectionism left actors no choice but to prioritize The Odyssey over the Oscars.

One thing is clear: Christopher Nolan’s epic might already be winning, just not at the Oscars.

While Anora dominated the 2025 Academy Awards, Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey stole the cultural conversation. Whether the cast’s absence was a scheduling nightmare or a Nolan master-plan, fans are now even more hyped for the film. After all, if sacrificing a few Oscars appearances means delivering a cinematic titan, the trade-off seems worth it.

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Do you think Nolan was the reason behind the Oscars’ missing stars? Drop your wildest theories in the comments