How Charlize Theron’s ‘The Odyssey’ Press Tour Wardrobe May Have Channeled Calypso
The actress plays the island nymph in Christopher Nolan’s film, and her liquid textures and cascading silhouettes may have offered an early clue.
“ The Odyssey ” is just days away from arriving in theaters, and its press tour has already created plenty of fashion headlines. Grecian-inspired styling has been the unofficial dress code for the stars promoting the film, including Charlize Theron , who has worn Dior , Givenchy and Tom Ford , among other designers, throughout the tour.
But beyond the mythological bent of Theron’s “Odyssey” red carpet and photo call wardrobe, what if there was more to the styling? She may have been channeling her character, the sea nymph Calypso, all along. Related Articles Fashion Features Family and Friends Remember Mathilde Favier Fashion Scoops Haider Ackermann Keeps Fueling Tom Ford's Seduction in Fall 2026 Campaign
In Homer’s “The Odyssey,” Calypso is a powerful sea nymph who detains Odysseus on the island of Ogygia for seven years as he attempts to return to Ithaca after the Trojan War. The character has inspired centuries of visual and screen interpretations, including Gerard de Lairesse’s circa-1680 painting “Odysseus and Calypso,” which portrays the pair together on Ogygia. You May Also Like
A 1997 adaptation of “The Odyssey” featured Vanessa Williams as Calypso. Naomie Harris later played another interpretation of the figure in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. Her character Tia Dalma, introduced in 2006’s “Dead Man’s Chest,” was revealed to be Calypso in 2007’s “At World’s End,” where her powerful relationship with the sea and the maritime legend Davy Jones became central to the story.
Longtime stylist Leslie Fremar , a former Vogue assistant, is behind Theron’s press-tour wardrobe. Fremar has also collaborated with Oscar-winner Jennifer Connelly, Eva Green and previously worked with Julianne Moore. Theron has been working with Fremar for roughly 10 years.
Throughout “The Odyssey” press tour, Theron and Fremar’s looks have appeared to draw on some of the poem’s textual and thematic cues, with water-adjacent textures and silhouettes recurring across her press tour wardrobe.
At the film’s Paris photo call on July 7, Theron wore a suited look with a pair of silver satin short-shorts. The reflective fabric and cool tone gave the tailored look a liquid finish, but it was not the tour’s only possible water reference.
Both Theron’s Dior dress from the July 8 Paris premiere and her Givenchy look by Sarah Burton at the July 6 London premiere included cascading waterfall effects. The “Monster” Oscar-winner’s custom Givenchy look included a bold waterfall of fabric at the back of the black halter dress, while her Dior gown included a peplum element that fell in a waterfall style. The lace’s shifts between sheer and opaque offered another possible reference to water and its changing transparency.
Taken together, the liquid surfaces and waterfall effects raise the possibility that Theron and Fremar have been channeling Calypso’s connection to the sea throughout “The Odyssey” press tour. The film opens in theaters on Friday.
