Media mogul Elon Musk has voiced his disapproval regarding the casting for Christopher Nolan’s upcoming blockbuster, The Odyssey. The Tesla CEO suggested that the selection of Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy and Elliot Page as Odysseus’s companion, Elpenor, was a calculated move to satisfy the Academy Awards’ inclusion standards.
It is worth noting that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recently introduced specific diversity and inclusion quotas. However, Nolan has never confirmed that these requirements influenced his casting decisions; notably, the director has previously collaborated with Elliot Page on the film Inception.
In Greek mythology, Helen of Troy is famously described as the “most beautiful woman in the world,” a characterization that American commentator Matt Walsh argues does not align with Nyong’o’s casting—a sentiment Musk has publicly echoed.
“Christopher Nolan knows he would be labeled a racist if he cast a white actress as the ‘most beautiful woman.’ Nolan is a technically gifted director, but he is a coward,”
— Walsh remarked.
Musk further contended that Nolan is “simply chasing awards,” asserting that the director is deliberately altering the established identities of legendary figures to pander to modern social agendas.
Source: Variety