Actress Lupita Nyong’o has told people who have criticized her casting as Helen of Troy in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey to remember that “this is a mythological story.”
The Oscar winner played Helen, whose beauty famously “launched a thousand ships” and resulted in the Trojan war, according to Homer’s ancient Greek legend.
But her casting has now sparked a culture war too, with critics including Elon Musk claiming it’s wrong to cast a black actress as the character in Nolan’s hotly anticipated movie.
Speaking to Elle, Nyong’o responded: “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.”
She added: “I’m not spending my time thinking of a defense. The criticism will exist whether I engage with it or not.”
Nyong’o also told the outlet: “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.”
Musk said director Nolan has “grossly insulted the Greek people,” and replied “true” to a meme of a man supposedly dancing on Homer’s grave.
Shaka Zulu was a famous leader of the Zulu nation.
Musk renewed his attack on Friday, writing on X: “Chris Nolan is an anti-White racist.”
Nolan has not responded to the criticism.
Does Matt Damon look Greek? No. So stop complaining about Lupita Nyong’o.
It’s worth noting that we really have no idea what Helen actually looked like. Homer limits his descriptions to generic banalities—“whose face is like that of the eternal goddesses”—while the two visual adjectives he attributes to her, “with beautiful hair” and “with snowy arms,” are conventional and used for other female characters as well. (She is also described as “wicked”; try finding someone who fits all of that description in a role.) Later authors, such as the playwright Euripides, introduce new adjectives, for example, “reddish-blond.” But, in general, the Greeks didn’t care much about her appearance.
