Matt Damon and Tom Holland were jealous of Zendaya on ‘The Odyssey’ set for a delightful reason

Matt Damon and Tom Holland bonded over something unexpected while on the set of “The Odyssey.” The Christopher Nolan film, which is one of the most anticipated films of the year, features some of the biggest names in the industry, among them Zendaya. When discussing her work, Damon revealed that Zendaya brought out a special reaction from Nolan, one that he and Holland had never been on the receiving end of. 

In an interview with Elle, Damon revealed that Nolan is very careful when praising his actors and providing them with direction. “So when you do a take, it’s not like he says, ‘That was great.’ He’ll go, ‘Yep, good. Okay.’ And that is the equivalent of the greatest praise you could ever get,” he said.

“Zendaya, on the other hand—there were takes where she did one thing, she did this amazing scene, and he said, ‘Cut.’ And then he went, ‘Perfect.’ And literally, Tom [Holland] and I were obsessed with this. She got a ‘perfect’? I’ve never even gotten a ‘great.’ She got a ‘perfect’? He and I bitched about it for the entire rest of the film. ‘Did you get anything today?’ ‘No, I got a “good”—moving on.’ ‘Yeah, me too.’”

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Damon had nothing but praise for Holland and Zendaya as actors. “Look, you forget, she and Tom are very young actors and very accomplished for how young they are, but they’re still in their 20s,” he said. Damon also revealed that the two make a great couple.

“I absolutely adore her and Tom together, and they deserve each other—they’re the two loveliest people,” he said.

Holland and Zendaya are two of Hollywood’s leading actors, starring in multimillion-dollar franchises and building exciting and varied careers. They’ve been rumored to have been together since 2017, with the two confirming their relationship in 2021. They have been engaged since 2025, with there being rumors of the two getting married. 

© Jeff Kravitz

Zendaya’s crazy 2026

Zendaya is one of this year’s biggest faces in entertainment, starring in “The Drama” and the last season of “Euphoria.” Her year is only getting busier in the coming months, with three of the biggest movies of her career premiering: “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” “The Odyssey,” and “Dune: Part Three.” 

“It’s going to be a long year, but what’s great is that I’m really proud of everything. I just really love my job,” she said to Elle. “But I think that after this, I’m going to have to take a little bit of a break.”

© Ernesto Ruscio