Christopher Nolan‘s next movie after The Odyssey could kill Hollywood’s biggest double standard.
It’s no secret that Nolan has been testing the waters for a horror movie. Nolan recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he’s “always looking” for a story to make in horror. In that genre, the story is more important to him than the technical side. He praised Obsession for having an “amazing idea.”
Nolan got to scratch that itch in The Odyssey with certain sequences that felt straight out of a horror movie, including a memorable sequence where Odysseus speaks with the shades of Tiresias, Sinon, and Agamemnon in Hades. These scenes could be the catalyst for Nolan to jump into horror for his next feature film.
“It very much whets my appetite for more,” Nolan said about The Odyssey’s horror stretches via THR. “But I’ve always believed that horror as a genre has to be approached very carefully from a conceptual point of view. In other words, you have to have an amazing idea.”
If Nolan decides to make a horror movie, it could be a game-changer for the genre in terms of its place at the Oscars.
Why a Christopher Nolan horror movie could finally erase Hollywood’s bias against horror
Horror has always had a tough time breaking through at the Oscars. It’s certainly possible, though. Look at Sinners at the 2026 Oscars, which received a record-breaking 16 nominations and won 4. The Silence of the Lambs won Best Picture at the 1992 Oscars, but it remains the only horror to win in that category.
Horror is often underrepresented at the Oscars. Weapons was one of the most critically acclaimed movies of 2025. Yet the film received one Oscar nomination for Amy Madigan, who won Best Supporting Actress. Again, a horror movie can receive an Academy Award nomination, but it almost feels like more of an anomaly at this point.
Nolan could completely shift the conversation if he makes a horror movie. Nolan is now one of the Academy’s most celebrated filmmakers. Before Oppenheimer, Nolan had five Oscar nominations and no wins. After Oppenheimer, Nolan won Best Picture and Best Director, and the movie picked up five more wins.
It’s only July, but The Odyssey feels like an Oscar contender. It will likely receive double-digit nominations, and Nolan has a legitimate chance to pick up another round of wins for Best Picture and Best Director.
When Nolan makes a movie, the Oscars pay attention. Nolan could be the right director to make a horror movie that paves the way forward for the genre at the Oscars. It’s certainly moving in the right direction after Sinners, and Nolan’s horror could be what’s needed to finally end the genre’s bias at the Oscars.
