Nolan Announces Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra, Travis Scott as Bard in The Odyssey

Christopher Nolan confirmed in a Time Magazine interview published on Tuesday that Lupita Nyong’o will portray Helen of Troy in his film adaptation of The Odyssey. Nyong’o will also portray Clytemnestra in the same film. Nolan revealed in the same interview that rapper Travis Scott will play a Greek bard.

Time Magazine described The Odyssey as the biggest film of Nolan’s career. It stated that the film may be the summer blockbuster the struggling entertainment industry needs right now. Elon Musk wrote on X on Tuesday that Nolan "wants the awards" in response to a comment about Academy Awards diversity requirements.

In January, Musk stated that "Chris Nolan has lost his integrity" regarding the casting of Helen of Troy. Musk had previously agreed with a conservative commentator who suggested Nolan would be called racist if he gave the role to a white woman instead. Lupita Nyong’o is Kenyan-Mexican and is known for roles in Black Panther and 12 Years a Slave.

Nolan has directed Interstellar, The Dark Knight trilogy, and Oppenheimer. He won Best Director and Best Picture for Oppenheimer at the 2024 Academy Awards. " A recent promotion for the film featured LeBron James and his son as parallels to Odysseus and Telemachus, with LeBron dribbling a basketball while narrating over imagery from the film.

Whoopi Goldberg discussed the casting controversy on The View on Thursday. She said those who had an issue with the casting should just not watch the movie. com reported that while the subject matter deals with ancient western civilization, some critics argue Nolan’s upcoming rendition appears too modern, ranging from informal American English speech to diverse casting choices.

The publication noted that many unconfirmed rumors had swirled in recent weeks before Nolan’s confirmation in the Time interview.