Robert Pattinson Australia

RPAU ROUNDUP: Media/Critics Review Robert Pattinson’s Performance in “The Odyssey”

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With the embargo lifted on critic reviews and the release of The Odyssey in cinemas, below is a roundup that focusses purely on Rob’s performance. As at 9.00am on 16 July 2026, Rotten Tomatoes has given it a score of 97% fresh. I will add new reviews to the top of each section when updating.

16 July 2026

*I will not post spoilers*

THE GOOD

See It or Skip It: Among the standouts from the supporting cast are … Pattinson as the petty Antinous, who connives to dispose of Telemachus and marry Penelope for the power it will bring him. (Score: 8/10)

Silver Screen Riot: Robert Pattinson is well-cast as a sniveling weasel of a suitor. (Grade: B+)

Region Free: The supporting cast is equally impressive, ranging from Robert Pattinson (deliciously weasely) … (Score: 5/5)

Awards Watch: … highlighted by the sniveling, slimy Antinous (Robert Pattinson, in yet another deliciously villainous turn)…Telemachus (Tom Holland), a prince who is, as Antinous says, is “pining for a daddy you didn’t even know, like some sniveling bastard,” (an expert line delivered by Pattinson)  (Grade: B)

Collider: Pattinson deserves his flowers as Antinous, the sleazy suitor who plots to replace Odysseus on the throne. It’s no secret that Pattinson is at his best when he is playing weirdos, be they heroes or villains, simply because he gets to have fun in these roles. Antinous might not be his greatest performance even of this year, but he consistently delivers stellar work, and this is no exception.

Consequence: Robert Pattinson delivers just the right mix of squirrelly menace …

Digital Spy: Robert Pattinson has a bit more to do and is truly hateful in the best way as Antinous … (Score: 5 stars)

Awards Radar: Robert Pattinson gets to be an oily villain, cloaked in a sheen that hides his true motivations. Pattinson is relishing the role and really enjoying it, too. … Awards wise …  Best Supporting Actor (for Holland, Leguizamo, and/or Pattinson). (Score: 4 stars)

The Only Critic: Robert Pattinson is wonderfully slimy as Antinous, bringing a smirking arrogance to one of the story’s most detestable figures. His performance embodies one of the film’s central questions: what happens when people abandon the laws and principles that hold civilization together … (Grade: A)

Flick Direct:  I do, however, question one or two of Nolan’s casting choices, such as Pattinson. Don’t get me wrong, he does a terrific job, but I just didn’t see him as being in the same age range as Hathaway nor old enough to be a “father figure” to Telemachus. (Grade: A-).

Next Best Picture: Robert Pattinson is effective as the spineless snake, Antinous, who is manipulating his way to get to Penelope. However, I do wish Pattinson had been allowed to go a bit more eccentric with the performance, as it feels a bit more reined in compared to some other work we’ve seen him do. Even so, Pattinson’s calculated restraint serves Antinous’s cowardice well, making him less an attention-grabbing villain than an opportunistic man flourishing within a kingdom left without its rightful leader. (Score: 9/10)

We Live Entertainment: And finally, there’s Pattinson, continuing to excel in Nolan’s work by playing a sleazy villain with depths one can understand. Still, he’s the kind of character you love to hate, but also a reflection of many of the inexplicable leaders currently running society.

Slash Film: Robert Pattinson, wonderfully detestable as Antinous, one of the suitors. The suitors are all so vile and cruel — they abuse Odysseus’ loyal, ancient dog, for crying out loud! — that we hate their stinking guts, and Pattinson is pitch-perfect as a scheming creep who thinks he’s worthy of being king despite having nothing to back that up.

Deep Focus Review: Pattinson is weaselly, disappearing into his detestable schemer role. 

Pop Heist: while Robert Pattinson shines a gloriously slimy sheen as Antinous …

Indiewire (David Ehrlich): (All hail a sniveling and magnificent Robert Pattinson, who spits into his own wine cup with such entitled disdain that Eumaeus can sense it from across the great hall.)

Decoding Everything: special attention must be paid to Robert Pattinson, who plays the suitor Antinous with such a sniveling, loathsome energy that he’s likely to become one of the most hated film characters of the year.

The Wolfman Cometh: While each performer is fantastic, it has to be Hathaway as a frustrated mother and wife and Pattinson as a sniveling creep who are the standouts.

The Hollywood Reporter: Pattinson bites into his character’s villainy with gusto, showing Antinous to be a cowardly conspirator, loyal only to himself.

Discussing Film: It’s tons of fun seeing Robert Pattinson play a villain you love to hate, embracing the slithery quirks of an influential coward like Antinous. On that note, Nolan is quite clear in how he portrays Antinous …

Screen Rant: Pattinson, perhaps my favorite of the supporting players, adds to his great canon of sniveling losers.

Showbiz Junkies: Robert Pattinson and Samantha Morton who threaten to run away with the movie. Pattinson, continuing his streak as one of the most impressive actors of his generation, plays the rotten-to-the-core suitor Antinous with a menacing, magnetic arrogance

Larsen on Film: Others, like Robert Pattinson as the sniveling Antinous and Zendaya as the wispy goddess Athena, are underused.)

Geek Girl Riot: Robert Pattinson playing the most terrible Antinous, the main Ithacan suitor manipulating everyone to get to be wed to Penelope. Now, Pattinson has played a terrible person like this before, but man, this one is for the record books. The man eats up so many scenes he’s in, working perfectly with his fellow performers. His scenes feel Shakespearean when he’s working against Hawkins, Hathaway, Holland and a surprising Mia Goth. He always knows what to do with his face, and his villain here is pitch-perfect in getting the right amount of heat out of you in the audience.

Variety: Antinous, lasciviously played by Robert Pattinson as an outright pantomime villain. 

The Guardian: The most prominent is the creepy Antinous, sleekly played by Robert Pattinson.

The Movie Buff: Robert Pattinson’s Antinous leads them with the oily confidence of a man who regards entitlement as evidence of destiny. He doesn’t simply want what belongs to Odysseus. He believes wanting it long enough should make it his.

The Globe and Mail: Robert Pattinson has the time of his life as Antinous, the most monstrous and hilarious of the suitors who occupy Penelope’s dining hall while angling for her throne.

Movieweb: The Odyssey has villains aplenty, but none as insidious and ruthless as Robert Pattinson’s Antinous. … Pattinson once again proves his dexterity and range as an actor. He can be the physically imposing hero in The Batman, a brooding lover in the Twilight series, but also excels at emoting darkness (The Devil All the Time, The Lighthouse). You almost want to shower after his grimy manipulation.

When Things Go Pop: Pattinson is a fun scenery chewer, relishing in Antonius’s haughty treachery. However, there are glimmers of vulnerability and inadequacy in his eyes that could’ve been unpacked more on the page. 

Roger Ebert:  Robert Pattinson as Antinous, the smoothest of the suitors, and a man so snide, petty, and duplicitous that you want to reach up and slap him.)

The Film Maven: The MVP of these scenes is Robert Pattinson’s Antinous, an Ithaca suitor who peddles a story about being spared from going to Troy. That story gets retold by Antinous several times and Pattinson’s delivery is always different, becoming more comical as he keeps bringing it up. Pattinson harnesses all the jealousy and cruelty of the character in a marvelous way.

Fresh Fiction: Pattinson is excellent as the slippery, arrogant villain, playing him without any mustache-twirling evilness.

Bleeding Cool: However, all of those scenes also include Robert Pattinson as Antinous, who is just the worst, and no one plays the worst better than Pattinson. … There are standouts for sure, with Pattinson being one …

Thank God for Movies: Pattinson has tremendous fun slowly removing the velvet glove from Antinous’s entitlement.

The Jam Report: Pattinson has no such difficulty embracing Antinous’ poisonous entitlement. He is marvellous as the most dangerous of Penelope’s suitors, turning every smile into a threat and every gesture of civility into a display of ownership. Antinous is selfish, predatory, and obsessed with the belief that Odysseus’ absence has created a kingdom for him to claim. Pattinson gives the character a reptilian charm that makes him fascinating to watch even as his presence grows increasingly repellent. The performance avoids reducing Antinous to a sneering caricature.

KoiMoi: As Antinous, Robert Pattinson is in form, though he reminds us of Hollywood (and Indian!) villains from the 1960s and 1970s. But maybe that was the brief given to him!

But Why Tho!: Robert Pattinson slides into the role of the scumbag suitor Antinous with his trademark zeal, providing a suitably hateable foil.

The Playlist: Led by Antinous, played by a magnificently weaselly Robert Pattinson …

AP News:  Foremost among them is Antinous, who’s played with sleazy perfection by Robert Pattinson. For an actor often (pleasingly) at odds with the movies around him, Pattinson has never slid more seamlessly into a part.

The Austin Chronicle: [Agamemnon’s] malice is equaled in its poisonous nature by Robert Pattinson as the ambitious Antinous, a depiction of vile, writhing, craven duplicity for the ages.

Big Gold Belt: Robert Pattinson is compelling as Antinous.

Mama’s Geeky: Robert Pattinson continues to amaze me. Every time I think I’ve seen his best performance, he somehow tops himself. Here, he plays a deeply flawed, cowardly character, and he’s absolutely phenomenal. Some of the close-up shots toward the end of the film showcase just how expressive he is. His performance says everything before he even speaks. No spoilers, but he does something truly special here.

Little White Lies: Pattinson, who has developed such a knack for villainy one hopes he might play Iago in Othello eventually.

Nerdist: Robert Pattinson might very well win a Best Supporting Oscar for playing the sneering villainous suitor Antinous.

Rendy Reviews: Speaking of weak-willed men, Robert Pattinson’s Antinous might be my favorite. He’s basically Scar from The Lion King, except Pattinson turns him into a sniveling, deeply pathetic little bitch. At the slightest inconvenience Antinous faces, Pattinson does a petty hemifacial spasm and it’s comedy gold.

Metro (UK): Pattinson having the most fun of anyone, channelling a little welcome panto, as sneering suitor Antinous.

Lyles Movie Files:  Pattinson is superb as the conniving scheming suitor.

RTE (Ireland): Robert Pattinson is also memorable as the villainous Antinous and delivers a performance that is difficult to look away from.

Forbes: the villainous and shrewd Antinous (played impeccably by Pattinson.

Authory:  Robert Pattinson will rightfully draw the most praise as Antinous, a rat-bastard suitor who plays crooked and scummy with such a love-to-hate charisma, but the list goes on.

The Australian: Lead suitor Robert Pattinson is vividly, repulsively lecherous.

Den of Geek: a delightfully scenery-chewing and sniveling Robert Pattinson.

WeHo Times: Robert Pattinson is wickedly good as Antinous, a cruel suitor vying for the throne, particularly in how he delivers lines with a wink of comedy.

Coming Soon: Robert Pattinson, meanwhile, continues to prove his remarkable versatility. While audiences know he can effortlessly play heroic figures like Cedric Diggory and Batman, he thrives when portraying deeply unpleasant characters. His performance as Antinous is thoroughly detestable, making him an immensely satisfying antagonist.

Matinee with Matt: Robert Pattinson embraces his villainous role as a main suitor with obvious enthusiasm, delivering one of the film’s most entertaining performances whenever he appears.

Cineuropa:  It takes a while for Robert Pattinson to settle into his role as Penelope’s sneering, snivelling suitor Antinous – but eventually, he blossoms, despite the one-track-minded character.

Film Ink Australia: Performances range from excellent with Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Jon Bernthal, Charlize Theron and John Leguizamo all doing terrific work…

TimeOut: Robert Pattinson, fabulously oily.

Rolling Stone: Pattinson slips into the sniveling, slimy mode he’s perfected over a number of grungy post-Twilight projects; the dude gives great punchable-face villainy

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THE BAD

Esquire: Pattinson’s sneering performance is all too familiar. 

Blu-ray: “The Odyssey” is somewhat uneven when it comes to dramatic encounters, as performances are a tad hit and miss, finding Pattinson cartoonishly evil.

Range: A quality exacerbated by some tepid, distractingly exaggerated turns from Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson.

Screenhub: Pattinson, Hathaway and Damon’s performances all pale in comparison to Marwan Kenzari, Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes in Italian director Uberto Pasolini’s much stronger The Return.

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THE UGLY