Lupita Nyong’o has pushed back against the online backlash to her casting as Helen of Troy in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, calling the controversy misplaced and saying she’s focused on the story Nolan is telling rather than the debate around it.
The criticism erupted after Universal released casting details and a first look at Nyong’o in the role. The Oscar winner plays Helen of Troy and her sister Clytemnestra in Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s epic, which hits IMAX on July 17, 2026.
The announcement drew immediate pushback online, with some arguing that a Black actress shouldn’t play Helen, described in the myth as “the face that launched a thousand ships” and the most beautiful woman in Greece.
Elon Musk joined in, posting on X that Nolan had “lost his integrity” and later agreeing with posts calling the casting a “DEI” move meant to chase awards. Conservative commentator Matt Walsh also criticized the choice, saying Nolan was a “coward” for not casting a white actress.
Nyong’o addressed it directly in an Elle cover story published May 21. “This is a mythological story,” she said. “I’m very supportive of Chris’s intention with it and with the version of this story that he is telling. Our cast is representative of the world. I’m not spending my time thinking of a defense. The criticism will exist whether I engage with it or not.”
She added that being part of The Odyssey felt significant because of its scale. “It’s quite something to be a part of The Odyssey, because it is so grand. It spans worlds. So that’s why the cast is what it is. We’re occupying the epic narrative of our time.”
The actress said she approached Helen beyond the label of beauty. “You can’t perform beauty. I want to know who a character is. What is beyond beauty? What is beyond looks?” Nyong’o explained. She said she based her portrayal on the script Nolan provided rather than getting lost in endless historical debate. “The good thing about working with a writer like Chris is that it’s on the page. The investigation starts with the pages you’re given. That’s what I based it on.”
Nolan defended the casting in the same Elle profile, saying Nyong’o’s strength and poise made her the right choice. “The strength and the poise were so important to the character of Helen,” he said. “And Lupita makes it look effortless. I’m sure there’s a tremendous amount of discipline and training that goes into projecting that kind of poise and feeling the emotion bubbling beneath the character.” He called her “an incredible person to work with” and said he was “absolutely desperate for her to do the part.”
The backlash fits into a broader pattern of criticism around race-swapped casting in mythological and historical adaptations. Musk and others have argued that casting a Black woman as Helen of Troy, who is described in Homer’s text as having “white arms,” breaks the internal logic of the story. Nyong’o’s response has been to frame the project as myth, not historical realism.
“This is a mythological story,” she repeated in multiple interviews. “I can’t spend my time thinking about all the people who still don’t love me. You’ll find the representatives who believe in you, and you’ll get on with it. I want to believe I’m built to last.”
Nyong’o also revealed she wasn’t deeply familiar with The Odyssey before taking the role. “I really had no idea what The Odyssey was,” she said. “I was like, ‘Oh, snap, I don’t know the first thing about this.’” That led her to a crash course in Greek mythology, reading The Odyssey and listening to Audra McDonald’s audiobook of The Iliad, which she called “the best audiobook I have ever listened to.”
The film itself is one of 2026’s most anticipated releases. Nolan shot it across multiple countries in IMAX, with Matt Damon as Odysseus, Anne Hathaway as Penelope, Tom Holland as Telemachus, Zendaya as Athena, Charlize Theron as Calypso, Jon Bernthal as Menelaus, and Benny Safdie as Agamemnon. Tickets for opening weekend IMAX showings sold out a year in advance.
For Nyong’o, the role is another step in a career built on complex, historically charged parts, from Patsey in 12 Years a Slave to Nakia in Black Panther. She said the dual role of Helen and Clytemnestra was an honor. “I was so deeply honored to be entrusted with the role. I mean, she is iconic. What more can I say?”
As for the noise online, she’s choosing not to engage. “The criticism will exist whether I engage with it or not,” she said. “I’m very supportive of Chris’s intention with it and with the version of this story that he is telling.”
