For months, Elon Musk and his right-wing supporters on “X” have expressed outrage over an alleged desecration of an ancient Greek poem by one of Hollywood’s most celebrated filmmakers.
As the fabricated backlash gains traction, they grapple with a narrative increasingly detached from public opinion.
Christopher Nolan’s artistic endeavor, Odyssey, has angered Musk and others, citing “historical inaccuracies” predominantly related to the casting of Lupita Nyong’o, a black actress, as Helen of Troy, and transgender Elliot Page as Sinon. This lavish fantasy features an array of mythical creatures but gives these actors merely 10 minutes of screen time in a three-hour epic. The surrounding hysteria about “wokeness” in Hollywood, rejected Americanized dialogue, and the persistent misogyny in scholar Emily Wilson’s 2017 translation of Homer’s epics, sparked numerous posts calling for boycotts that ultimately did not materialize.
Instead, the mythical drama has surpassed expectations, raking in $264 million during its opening weekend and continues to lead at the box office, likely positioned for a slew of award nominations. While several conservative commentators, including Ben Shapiro, argue over whether Odyssey is “biblical” or “woke,” fans of DEI and “woke” values see this as a significant breakthrough. While some who anticipated its downfall shifted focus to other culture wars battles, many stubbornly remained in denial.
Amidst the chatter, an anonymous account on X claimed, “Odyssey Moviegoers are supposedly inflating ticket sales by buying out theaters to create the illusion of success (fraud) (already $400 million in the red). Reports indicate that ticket holders were given bad seats due to a full house, only to find theaters nearly empty.” This post shared unverified anecdotes from Reddit about quiet screenings and no-show patrons.
It’s unclear what Universal Pictures hoped to achieve by spending millions beyond its $250 million production budget and $125 million marketing costs for this cinematic venture. These are the same conspiracy theorists questioning why critic reviews are timed to coincide.
Musk seemed to draw inspiration from a post on X showcasing a 3-minute AI-generated scene featuring characters from Odyssey depicted as exclusively white with British accents. The world’s richest man responded to this clip, likening it to a montage from a dull 1970s film, and declared: “By year-end, Grok Imagine will produce a historically accurate and faithful feature-length adaptation of the Odyssey.”
Those familiar with Musk know that when he promises to hit a milestone by year-end, it often means rarely happens. While the Grok Animation Promise for Odyssey appears minor compared to his more audacious goals, he’s even speculated that xAI might “discover new technologies” within months in 2025—sure to be another lofty ambition. This idea lacks appeal to mainstream audiences who have already experienced, or are about to see, Nolan’s version as unoriginal. AI studio Fountain 0 plans to release an artificially generated feature based on its next title online, Odyssey: The Fall this summer.
Source: www.wired.com