Christopher Nolan has shared the exceptionally poetic reason behind casting rapper Travis Scott as the bard in his forthcoming epic The Odyssey.
The Oscar-winning director’s next movie, an adaptation of Homer’s Greek poem, stars Matt Damon as the hero Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as his wife Penelope and Tom Holland as their son Telemachus. Also featuring Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Mia Goth and Benny Safdie, it will follow Odysseus along his perilous journey back home after the 10-year Trojan War.
Scott’s role was first revealed in a January trailer for the movie, and left several viewers stunned and confused.
Explaining his decision to cast the 35-year-old “Sicko Mode” rapper, Nolan told Time magazine in a new interview: “I cast him because I wanted to nod towards the idea that this story has been handed down as oral poetry, which is analogous to rap.”
Several fans on X commended the British filmmaker for his “great idea,” with one writing: “Only Christopher Nolan could connect ancient oral poetry and modern rap culture in a way that actually makes perfect sense.”
“That’s a far more thoughtful creative choice than people realize,” a second added, while another agreed that “Travis Scott’s music often has a storytelling feel to it, so I can see why Nolan would think of him for this role.”
While this marks Scott’s first major film role, fans might remember that the rapper’s song “The Plan” featured on the soundtrack for Nolan’s 2020 sci-fi movie Tenet.
Scott also made a cameo in the 2019 thriller Gully as a movie store owner and had a role in the 2023 limited-release experimental action-crime Aggro Dr1ft.
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Nolan previously compared The Odyssey to Marvel, stating that Greek heroes “very directly” influenced contemporary superheroes.
“They’re the original superheroes,” he said on a recent episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. “Even comic-book culture, whether you’re talking about Marvel or DC or the rest, a lot of it comes pretty directly from the Homeric epics.”
The latest trailer for The Odyssey, out in theaters July 17, sparked complaints over the actor’s “jarring” accents and modern dialogue.
“I want you to choose me,” says Robert Pattinson’s Antinous, one of Penelope’s suitors. “Ithica’s King is coming back,” she responds, to which Antinous disagrees: “No, he’s not.”
A following scene shows Antinous confronting Holland’s Telemachus. “You’re pining for a daddy you didn’t even know,” he growls, “like some sniveling bastard.”
Multiple fans took issue with the actors’ American accents and the use of the term “daddy” — elements they said feel ill-suited to the ancient Greek setting of The Odyssey.
