Christopher Nolan has explained his decision to cast rapper Travis Scott in his upcoming epic The Odyssey, citing a poetic link between ancient oral poetry and modern rap. The Oscar-winning director told Time magazine that he cast Scott, 35, as the bard in the film adaptation of Homer's Greek poem to nod to the tradition of oral storytelling.
“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,” Nolan said. The casting was first revealed in a January trailer and left some viewers surprised, but many fans on social media praised the choice as thoughtful.
The film stars Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, and Tom Holland as Telemachus, alongside Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, and others. It follows Odysseus's perilous journey home after the Trojan War. Scott's previous film roles include a cameo in Gully and a part in Aggro Dr1ft, and his song “The Plan” featured on the soundtrack of Nolan's Tenet.
Nolan has also compared The Odyssey to superhero films, noting that Greek heroes directly influenced modern comic-book characters. The latest trailer, released ahead of the film's July 17 premiere, sparked complaints about American accents and modern dialogue, with some viewers finding terms like “daddy” jarring for an ancient setting.
