Woah, Nolan’s The Odyssey left out some seriously NSFW moments from Homer’s original story

For a film that’s sparked endless debates about accuracy, one of the biggest omissions in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is arguably far less academic: Where did all the sex go?

Homer’s original epic is a lot steamier than the film lets on. While Nolan keeps Odysseus’ journey focused on monsters, gods and getting back to Ithaca, the source material is packed with affairs, seduction and some seriously questionable relationships that never made it to the screen.

Here are the biggest NSFW moments the movie leaves behind.

Odysseus spends a year with Circe as her lover

The film introduces Circe, but skips over just how long Odysseus actually stays with her.

In Homer’s version of The Odyssey, after Circe famously turns his men into pigs, Odysseus becomes her lover. What starts as an uneasy encounter turns into a full year living together on her island before he finally decides it’s time to continue his journey home. In one translation, they even have a child together.

Calypso keeps Odysseus as her lover for seven years

Charlize Theron’s Calypso is one of the most striking characters in the film, but their relationship is heavily toned down.

In the original story, Calypso keeps Odysseus stranded on her island for seven years, with the pair sleeping together every night while he longs to return to Penelope. The gods eventually intervene and order Calypso to let him leave.

Even then, before Odysseus finally sets sail, Homer suggests the pair sleep together one last time.

The story of Aphrodite and Ares is far more explicit

One of the stories told during The Odyssey involves Aphrodite and Ares’ affair behind Hephaestus’ back.

It’s already one of Greek mythology’s messiest scandals, but the original poem doesn’t exactly shy away from the fact that the pair are lovers. Their affair is exposed when Hephaestus traps them together in an invisible net while they’re in bed, before inviting the other gods to witness the embarrassing scene.

Athena literally gives Odysseus and Penelope more time in bed

The reunion between Odysseus and Penelope is one of the emotional high points of the story, but Homer adds an extra detail that never appears on screen.

After years apart, the couple finally spend the night together. According to the poem, Athena actually holds back Dawn herself so morning won’t arrive too soon, giving the reunited couple longer together before Odysseus has to face the rest of his kingdom.

Helen and Menelaus share a mysterious bedroom scene

There’s also a more subtle moment involving Helen and Menelaus.

When Telemachus visits Sparta, Homer describes the pair retiring to the same bed. The text never explicitly says what happens next, leaving it deliberately vague, but it’s another reminder that married couples sharing beds is a recurring part of the epic.

Even the bath scenes are surprisingly suggestive

Not every NSFW moment in The Odyssey is about sex.

Throughout the poem, characters are constantly bathing, being washed by attendants or having their bodies anointed with oils before emerging looking impossibly beautiful. By modern standards they’re fairly tame, but the repeated focus on naked bathing and physical beauty gives parts of the poem an unexpectedly sensual feel.

For a story often remembered for Cyclopes, sirens and giant sea monsters, Homer’s Odyssey is also full of romance, desire and relationships that Christopher Nolan largely leaves off-screen.

It might make for a more family-friendly blockbuster, but the original myth is definitely a lot less restrained.

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Featured image credit: Universal