John Leguizamo Says “Odyssey” Costar Matt Damon Is the ‘Coolest, Funniest, Realest Dude’ Ahead of Filming Next Movie Together (Exclusive)

John Leguizamo Says “Odyssey” Costar Matt Damon Is the ‘Coolest, Funniest, Realest Dude’ Ahead of Filming Next Movie Together (Exclusive) https://ift.tt/hWzspMK

“Working with Matt is a joy and a half,” Leguizamo tells PEOPLE

John Leguizamo in July 2026; Matt Damon in July 2026
Credit: Marc Piasecki/WireImage

NEED TO KNOW

• John Leguizamo exclusively told PEOPLE that he’s excited to reunite with his Odyssey costar Matt Damon
• The actors are set to star in a film from Everything Everywhere All at Once co-directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
• “Working with Matt is a joy and a half,” Leguizamo said

John Leguizamo is ready to reunite with his Odyssey costar Matt Damon.

Speaking with PEOPLE at the Critics Choice Association’s 6th Celebración Of Cinema & Television in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Friday, Oct. 2, the 66-year-old actor opened up about working on another film with Damon, 55, following their starring roles in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.

“We’re doing the Daniels, because working with Matt is a joy and a half. He’s the coolest, funniest, realest dude that I ever hung out with. So yeah, I’ll do a third if he’s up for it, if he can tolerate me,” Leguizamo says, while also referencing their first project, the 2000 animated sci-fi film Titan A.E.

The two actors are next set to star in a film directed by “the Daniels” — Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert — the co-directors of Everything Everywhere All at Once, Deadline previously reported.

Leguizamo tells PEOPLE, “I’m not allowed to say anything except that it’s a Daniels movie, [and] we’re having an amazing time. The cast is unbelievable. A whole bunch of new kids who are so talented and inspire me. I mean, the young actors coming up, oh my God, they give me so much hope and so much joy.”

John Leguizamo and Matt Damon in ‘The Odyssey.’
Credit: Universal Pictures

The Daniels are set to write and direct the unnamed film, which will also star Sandra Oh, Sean Kaufman, Michael Gandolfini and Charles Melton. No additional details about the movie are available at this time.

Elsewhere in his conversation with PEOPLE, Leguizamo — who was honored with a Career Achievement Award at Friday’s Celebración Of Cinema & Television — reflected on working with Nolan.

“I feel like The Odyssey is such a beautiful gift to the world. I think it’s a piece of art,” he says, opening up about how the film might be received during awards season. “I think it’s going to be for cinema history. I just think the script that Nolan wrote is so powerful, so timely, an anti-war picture in this era. ... It feels like it’s so important that I hope it gets all the love it deserves.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Ahead of his Career Achievement Award, Leguizamo also looked back some of the earliest moments in his career, including his first ever TV role, an episode of Miami Vice in 1986. The actor is also set to return to the world of Miami Vice for the upcoming Miami Vice ’85 film alongside Austin Butler and Michael B. Jordan, per Deadline.

“That was my first thing on film,” he shares of his Miami Vice episode. “It was my first check. I was starving to death. I was able to eat. And now here, 40 years later in my 60s, I’m in Miami Vice playing kind of the lead role in the film. It’s pretty exciting.”

John Leguizamo in July 2026
Credit: John Nacion/WireImage

In The Odyssey, Damon plays Odysseus, the king of Ithaca who makes a long journey home, while Leguizamo plays Eumaeus, a blind servant in the Ithacan palace who is a friend of Odysseus and helps raise his son Telemachus (Tom Holland).

Leguizamo told PEOPLE in July that he “couldn’t believe what a generous, humble and funny dude” Damon was on the set of the epic fantasy adaptation.

“I had no idea what to expect, but I didn’t expect his incredible generosity. He never complained, and he was doing the heaviest lifting of any actor in the whole movie. And the dude never had an unkind word, was always kind to the crew. Just a lovely, lovely dude. Chef’s kiss of an actor,” he said at the time.