Posted: 7/8/2026 1:27:43 PM EDT
[Last Edit: 1975][Edited]
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Screenings cancelled except for "approved" critics Attached File Christopher Nolan is in hot water for choices he made regarding his upcoming movie. The Academy Award-winning director is receiving backlash for many of his decisions in the making of the film, including casting choices, historical inaccuracies throughout and use of modern dialogue. "Christopher Nolan has cancelled all screenings of The Odyssey with movie influencers," one X user wrote. "He is only allowing approved critics to see it in advance. He is waving the surrender flag. They know they have a financial disaster on their hands." Much of the criticism comes from his choice to cast Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy, as Homer describes the character as having "white arms" in the book. Social media users have pointed out that Nyong'o's African roots and darker complexion contradict this description of the character. Also causing controversy, is his decision to cast transgender actor Elliot Page as Sinus, a great warrior who fought alongside Odysseus during the Trojan War, as well as rapper Travis Scott as an unknown male character in the epic tale. "All Christopher Nolan had to do was deliver a visually stunning take on a classic — and he’d have had a huge hit," one X user wrote. "Instead, he decided to ruin it with questionable modifications. Some say he bowed to the woke crowd. Others say he is the woke crowd and was trying to make a statement. Regardless… go woke, go broke." "I was ready to pay for Chris Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ the second I heard about it. Then the casting dropped," another user wrote. "And just like that, I knew he’s no longer a serious filmmaker. Because if he were, he wouldn’t let diversity mandates destroy his work… he blackified crucial Greek characters on purpose… I won’t be paying to see it." Elon Musk even got in on the action, commenting, "how pathetic," of the original post. Others have taken issue with the fact that no actors of Greek or Mediterranean descent were cast in the film. "I’m very supportive of Chris’s intention with it and with the version of this story that he is telling. Our cast is representative of the world. I’m not spending my time thinking of a defense. The criticism will exist whether I engage with it or not," Nyong'o told Elle in May in defense of the film. "It’s quite something to be a part of 'The Odyssey,' because it is so grand. It spans worlds. So that’s why the cast is what it is. We’re occupying the epic narrative of our time." Nolan responded to the criticism surrounding his decision to cast Scott, telling Time magazine in May he cast him because he wanted to pay tribute to "the idea that this story has been handed down as oral poetry, which is analogous to rap." He later spoke about his process when taking on a story that audiences are already very familiar with on Amy Poehler's podcast, "Good Hang," saying he realized while making the "Batman" trilogy that "what people want from you is your most sincere attempt to do justice to the material," but that it also "has to be your own interpretation." "Certainly, I, as a filmmaker, respond to that in other people," he said. "If I go see a movie and I realize that people have loved this and have really tried to give you an experience and tried to put something across in the way that they really believe is great, uh, I think people cut you a lot of slack for that cuz yes, you cannot compete with people's own imaginings when they read a text." Others were able to look past the casting, but took issue with the many historical inaccuracies in the film, with one X user pointing out the style of Damon's helmet and armor were incorrect for the time period, with another saying, "Period armor is more Roman than Greece." "Nolan makes utterly bizarre, anachronistic, ahistorical, aesthetic choices for his 'Odyssey,' comic book armor, viking ships, diverse cast," one X users wrote. "If he's playing this fast and loose with history, material culture, ethnography, etc... what're the odds he isn't monkeying with the myth?" "I agree about bad casting, but the choice to use modern language in the dialogue is the most egregious problem," one X user wrote. "Why on earth did Nolan think that was a good idea?" One particular example of the use of modern dialogue, is when Tom Holland, who plays Telemachus, the son of Odysseus, refers to his father as dad. While many were upset by multiple aspects of the film, others were not as bothered by the inaccuracies in casting, dialogue or costumes. "Despite all the controversy, I’m going to watch The Odyssey," one X user wrote. "I love Homer’s works. I’m curious to see what Christopher Nolan does with them." Another added, "Nolan wanted to do Odyssey, so he did it. Oppenheimer was great art? Why does it require ‘value’ to be made, all art is the artist’s interpretation in itself." The movie, also starring Zendaya as Athena, Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Charlize Theron as Calypso and many other big stars, is set to premiere in theaters on Friday, July 17. |
“It was always the women, and above all the young ones, who were the most bigoted adherents of the Party, the swallowers of slogans, the amateur spies and nosers-out of unorthodoxy.” -George Orwell, 1984
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Originally Posted By zaskar017: Chris Nolan in full-blown panic mode over Odyssey backlash https://media3.giphy.com/media/jH6s9HMMi53dSdI73r/200.webp?cid=8dc8958cjj5ua0e2lysq919mf4uw1vnya55wm5msx4o9d4pu&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200.webp&ct=g  We are told this is Helen of Troy Attached File And this is brave Sinus Attached File |
“It was always the women, and above all the young ones, who were the most bigoted adherents of the Party, the swallowers of slogans, the amateur spies and nosers-out of unorthodoxy.” -George Orwell, 1984
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On Nolan’s rep alone it’ll make big money. However I also think it will be a big miss. All of those casting choices and not a single actor with obvious Greek heritage among them. He’s too heavily reliant on current thing; it’s made worse by the fact the current thing in his version of Odyssey was current three years ago. Just MHO. |
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A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... |
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Originally Posted By thirsty: On Nolan’s rep alone it’ll make big money. However I also think it will be a big miss. All of those casting choices and not a single actor with obvious Greek heritage among them. He’s too heavily reliant on current thing; it’s made worse by the fact the current thing in his version of Odyssey was current three years ago. Just MHO. He just wanted to meet Oscar diversity standards and didn't care what effect it had on the product imo. |
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Originally Posted By 1975: We are told this is Helen of Troy https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/259519/IMG_9122_jpeg-3791677.JPG And this is brave Sinus https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/259519/IMG_9123_jpeg-3791678.JPG Originally Posted By 1975: Originally Posted By zaskar017: Chris Nolan in full-blown panic mode over Odyssey backlash https://media3.giphy.com/media/jH6s9HMMi53dSdI73r/200.webp?cid=8dc8958cjj5ua0e2lysq919mf4uw1vnya55wm5msx4o9d4pu&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200.webp&ct=g We are told this is Helen of Troy https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/259519/IMG_9122_jpeg-3791677.JPG And this is brave Sinus https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/259519/IMG_9123_jpeg-3791678.JPG I am fully aware of who was casted. I simply don’t believe the headline. |
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Originally Posted By 1975: We are told this is Helen of Troy https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/259519/IMG_9122_jpeg-3791677.JPG That's Helen of Detroit |
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Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... Yeah, I don't like the guy either but he's fine in movies. Interstellar for example, perfect casting for that character. |
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Originally Posted By thirsty: On Nolan’s rep alone it’ll make big money. However I also think it will be a big miss. All of those casting choices and not a single actor with obvious Greek heritage among them. Didn't Rachel Ziegler tell us that representing a character's ethnicity is really important? (Of course, she's Columbian/Polish and was playing a Puerto Rican so she's completely two faced but still...) |
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Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... ... Lol wtf are you smokin? |
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Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... Yeah, nothing to do with Odysseus being 5'1 or any of the other casting choices. Did you miss the huge number of memes about Paige in this? |
| Check the ODYSSEY TRAILER COMMENTS. Some are epicly hilarious. |
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Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... Attached File |
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Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... Wait, Matt Damon is gay? I sincerely did not know that. I won't be going to see this movie because it looks like it's going to suck from every other aspect. The knowledge of Matt Damon's sexuality has nothing to do it. |
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Originally Posted By Kuraki: He just wanted to meet Oscar diversity standards and didn't care what effect it had on the product imo. Originally Posted By Kuraki: Originally Posted By thirsty: On Nolan’s rep alone it’ll make big money. However I also think it will be a big miss. All of those casting choices and not a single actor with obvious Greek heritage among them. He’s too heavily reliant on current thing; it’s made worse by the fact the current thing in his version of Odyssey was current three years ago. Just MHO. He just wanted to meet Oscar diversity standards and didn't care what effect it had on the product imo. He won for Oppenheimer with essentially no DEi actors.. so maybe not? |
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Originally Posted By Bringo: Wait, Matt Damon is gay? I sincerely did not know that. I won't be going to see this movie because it looks like it's going to suck from every other aspect. The knowledge of Matt Damon's sexuality has nothing to do it. Originally Posted By Bringo: Originally Posted By colklink: A lot of what I've read online, the criticism is homophobic in nature. All over Matt Damon being in the movie. And while his alleged appetite for turgid penis is legendary, he's still a decent actor, besides being a gay homosexual... Wait, Matt Damon is gay? I sincerely did not know that. I won't be going to see this movie because it looks like it's going to suck from every other aspect. The knowledge of Matt Damon's sexuality has nothing to do it. No, he isn’t. Married for over 20 years with four kids. Prior to that he was linked to a number of Hollywood actresses. Just some troll recycling the every actor is gay trope. |
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Originally Posted By Kuraki: Yeah, I don't like the guy either but he's fine in movies. Interstellar for example, perfect casting for that character. In his spare time, he enjoys being made airtight. Allegedly. So what? |
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Originally Posted By schiffer99: No, he isn’t. Married for over 20 years with four kids. Prior to that he was linked to a number of Hollywood actresses. Just some troll recycling the every actor is gay trope. Have you heard the expression of A Beard? He's had a Hollywood Beard for over twenty years friendo. Allegedly. And for how long as Barack Hussain Obama been married to Michael ( Robinson ) Obama? They ' have ' two kids as well. |
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I doubt he is panic and I doubt he even cares what people think. He'll still make money. I honestly hope it fucking craters, I hate this version or altered history. I wish he had balls and pulled an Apocalypto and used no name actors that actually looked like they belonged in the setting. |
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Originally Posted By schiffer99: No, he isn’t. Married for over 20 years with four kids. Prior to that he was linked to a number of Hollywood actresses. Just some troll recycling the every actor is gay trope. I had a manager that has two kids. Dated a few women after his divorce. Now he likes his fudge to be packed. And is married to his packer. |
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Originally Posted By LostX: I had a manager that has two kids. Dated a few women after his divorce. Now he likes his fudge to be packed. And is married to his packer. This. Matt's still an incredible actor. Look at the Bourne franchise. Without that, we don't get John Wick. Matt Damon hurts no one with his sexual orientation. Allegedly. |
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Yawn. Haven't been to a movie theater since American Sniper. There's been very few movies produced since that I would even consider going to see, and this one is a hard NO. "Woke" is racism. Homo/trans is an aberration, a perversion. Two thumbs down. |
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Originally Posted By PacNW5: Already got our IMAX tickets and feel lucky to have decent seats given how many were sold out. We'll see for ourselves next week.  Attached File |
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Originally Posted By colklink: This. Matt's still an incredible actor. Look at the Bourne franchise. Without that, we don't get John Wick. Matt Damon hurts no one with his sexual orientation. Allegedly. Originally Posted By colklink: Originally Posted By LostX: I had a manager that has two kids. Dated a few women after his divorce. Now he likes his fudge to be packed. And is married to his packer. This. Matt's still an incredible actor. Look at the Bourne franchise. Without that, we don't get John Wick. Matt Damon hurts no one with his sexual orientation. Allegedly. You seem oddly obsessed with his sexual orientation
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