Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 26
Nolan's 'The Odyssey' Tops $300 Million as Casting of 2 Actors Fuels Online Rage
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 26

Nolan's 'The Odyssey' Tops $300 Million as Casting of 2 Actors Fuels Online Rage

3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 26

Summary

  • $300 million in box office has not quieted backlash to Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey," with online critics attacking the casting of Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy and transgender actor Elliot Page.
  • Those complaints framed the film as "woke" before and after its July 17 release, even though the column argues the movie itself is strikingly conservative in theme and far from DEI propaganda.
  • The piece uses the dispute to argue that internet outrage has become addictive, turning minor culture-war flashpoints into recurring targets for collective anger with little practical effect.
  • That cycle, it says, can deepen loneliness and distraction rather than solve real problems, urging people to act offline on genuine issues instead of feeding manufactured fury.

Insights

Has internet outrage become so self-feeding that blockbuster films are judged by casting discourse before audiences even understand the movie?
Is the backlash over Helen of Troy’s casting really about mythic accuracy, or about who gets to claim cultural ownership of old stories?