The culture war comes for Nolan’s The Odyssey

The furore surrounding the film the Odyssey exposes, again, how right-wing media discourse, tinged with overt racism, can be weaponised to fuel culture wars. Furthermore, it is used to score political points. Amid the cacophony of praise surrounding Christopher Nolan’s Hollywood retelling of the Homer epic, it’s easy to forget that the controversy erupted long before its release. Not long after casting was made public, Nolan’s film was drawn into a wider right-wing cultural war battleground. The official trailer received the highest number of dislikes of any Nolan release. Even Elon Musk jumped on the bandwagon, bringing his familiar inflammatory culture-war…

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Oppressed Sahrawi filmmakers call for boycott of The Odyssey as Nolan chose to film in occupied territory

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  • Post last modified:16 July 2026

Boycott calls are growing as Sahrawis slam Christopher Nolan’s decision to film The Odyssey in occupied territory. All while doing nothing to acknowledge the occupation or the Sahrawis who continue to resist Morocco’s ethnic cleansing campaign to force them from their land. Nolan chose Dakhla as the location for the film, set for release on Friday 17 July, despite the fact that the land has been occupied by Morocco for 50 years. In turn, critics have pointed out that this can only work to normalise the oppression and forced displacement of Sahrawis. Sahrawi filmmakers and journalists have condemned this deplorable lack of empathy…

Continue ReadingOppressed Sahrawi filmmakers call for boycott of The Odyssey as Nolan chose to film in occupied territory