Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey Is Already Slammed for Reason Ridley Scott Can Relate to
The first look at what the upcoming movie has in store received a controversial reaction because of Matt Damon’s helmet.
Announced several months ago, Christopher Nolan ’s star-packed epic film Odyssey is already in full production mode, as news about the director and the team shooting somewhere on a Greek island has been flooding the media for a couple of weeks now.
The future movie’s plot details are still under wraps, but it’s pretty clear that Odyssey will star Matt Damon as the legendary Greek hero Odysseus who, having survived in The Trojan War, embarks on a journey back home where his wife Penelope and their son Telemachus have been waiting for him.
Nobody quite expected something controversial in the Greek poem’s new adaptation, considering Nolan’s intention to stick to accuracy in his films, but the first look at Matt Damon’s character is, surprisingly, the first bad omen.
History Fans Aren’t Happy About Matt Damon’s Look in Odyssey
Despite being one of the most anticipated movies set to release in the upcoming years, Nolan’s Odyssey is already not on good terms with those familiar with Homer’s poem or at least Greek history.
The first photo from the movie set, featuring Matt Damon as Odysseus, was published a few days ago and garnered all kinds of reactions, with some users slamming the future film for an inaccurate portrayal of a Greek warrior.
On X, user @witte_sergei made a reference to Homer’s other famous poem The Iliad, saying that it “literally describes Odysseus wearing a kino leather helmet adorned with boar tusks, but Hollywood can never resist the siren song of the generic ancient broom helmet. This helmet is like cocaine to costume designers.”
“The Odyssey is set during the age of heros (aka the Mycenaean period) some time around 1200 BC and so the helmets would have been of the boar tusk style, not the corinthian style. The corinthian helmet didn't come into use until the Archaic period, around 700 BC,” @WeeboJones chimed in, joining those who found the first sneak peek into Nolan’s new and exciting project quite disappointing.
Christopher Nolan Better Not Follow Into Ridley Scott ’s Footsteps
An author to such historical-ish cinematic experiences like Napoleon, The Last Duel, House of Gucci, Gladiator and its sequel, Ridley Scott has long been accused of altering real-life facts for more dramatic effects in his movies.
However, the proclaimed director is no stranger to handling harsh criticism with no less harsh responses, with which he usually strikes back at historians.
Scott addressed the issue in an interview with Total Film back in 2023 when his historical drama Napoleon starring Joaquin Phoenix was released, claiming that no one was in the right position to decide for sure whether this or that event happened or not.
“It always amuses me when a critic says to me, 'This didn't happen in Jerusalem.' I say, 'Were you there? That’s the fu—ing answer,” the director concluded.
