The Usual Suspects Are Mad Lupita Nyong’o Is Playing a Mythological Woman in ‘The Odyssey’
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey still doesn’t debut until the summer, but it continues to dominate the conversation. There are a lot of reasons for that: fact that the movie is his post-Oppenheimer blank check, the fact that it is an adaptation of such an iconic piece of source material, and the star-studded ensemble cast.
But now — unsurprisingly, and unfortunately — the mere presence one member of that cast has provoked a lot of nonsense online. Rumors have begun to swirl that Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o is set to play Helen of Troy in The Odyssey… and although the specifics of her role still officially remain under wraps, that hasn’t stopped conservatives online from getting mad.
A number of viral tweets have fully ventured into racism, arguing that Nyong’o shouldn’t be playing a character who is traditionally portrayed as fair-skinned and blonde, and that Nolan is already “ruining” the sanctity of the story he is adapting. Even Elon Musk weighed in, replying to a tweet condemning it with “Chris Nolan has lost his integrity.”
These posts ignore the fact that Helen of Troy is a fictional woman, originating from centuries of myth that were passed down through retellings and reframings. They also ignore the fact that, geographically, the ancient Greece setting of The Odyssey is closer to Africa than people realize, so it would arguably be less realistic for Helen of Troy to be pale and blonde. Even then, there is no current concrete confirmation that Nyong’o is definitely playing Helen of Troy… but honestly, that level of misinformation is becoming commonplace on social media.
Why Do We Keep Doing This?
This is just the latest string of discourse surrounding The Odyssey, before we even have more than a few minutes of footage, and months before the movie is even set to premiere. The unconventional rollout of its 70mm IMAX tickets, the aesthetic choices of Nolan’s suits of armor, the choice to actually show the Trojan Horse, and the etymology of the word “father” have all already become topics of conversation. It just feels like people are grasping at straws for ways to condemn the movie before it can even began: either because they’re annoyed at Nolan and his continued success, they’re secretly wanting the movie to underperform compared to other blockbusters on the horizon, or they’re just miserable and want to engage with all art like they’re making a CinemaSins video.
It’s annoying, doubly so when you consider the fact that… a good chunk of these people who are currently complaining about The Odyssey probably aren’t even that familiar with The Odyssey anyway. That was clear when it was first officially confirmed to be Nolan’s next movie, and a slew of people came out of the woodwork to not only admit that they had no idea what it was, but to make that fact everyone else’s problem.
Never mind the fact that The Odyssey is essentially the template for a Hero’s Journey. Never mind the fact that its actual plot has been adapted and retold in a number of different contexts, from O Brother, Where Art Thou? to The Simpsons. People are going to weaponize their ignorance around the story through the release of Nolan’s movie, and probably well beyond that. It’s up to us how we choose to navigate those treacherous waters.
(featured image: Emma McIntyre/Oscars/Getty Images for Academy Museum of Motion Pictures)
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