LOS ANGELES, CA — Canadian stunt performer Devyn Dalton is the viral sensation behind Matt Damon’s muscular frame in Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film, The Odyssey.
Watch Canadian stunt performer Devyn Dalton break down the training regimen and forced perspective techniques used to double for Matt Damon:
Following the movie’s record-breaking $264 million global opening weekend, Damon publicly unmasked his unlikely double. Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz, Damon revealed that a sub-five-foot woman stepped in to shoot his character’s high-octane battle sequences.
“My double was a woman, a female stunt performer, who had the greatest arms I’ve ever seen,” Damon confessed.
The Practical Magic Behind Nolan’s Giants
The casting choice was dictated by Director Christopher Nolan’s strict commitment to practical filmmaking over digital CGI. During the sequence featuring the mythical, giant Laestrygonians, Nolan utilized forced perspective photography to simulate massive scale differences.
- The Giants: Portrayed practically by stuntmen measuring over seven feet tall.
- The Scaling Trick: By pairing them with the 4-foot-6 Dalton, the optical illusion naturally amplified the monsters’ looming, terrifying heights on IMAX cameras.
Dalton spent months building dense muscle mass to match Damon’s physique for the shot. The transition proved so seamless that audiences widely assumed the giant, flexing forearms on screen belonged entirely to the leading man.
Breaking Boundaries in the Stunt Industry
With over 80 professional credits spanning motion-capture, creatures, and voice acting, Dalton viewed the high-profile assignment as the peak of her career.
“Opportunities like this come from building trust and a strong reputation,” Dalton told reporters in a recent interview with the New York Post. “I spent my entire career preparing for this”. She hopes her viral spotlight inspires more women to break traditional physical stereotypes in Hollywood.
