Christopher Nolan’s ‘Odyssey’ Sparks Literary Feud as Joyce Carol Oates Slams Critic’s ‘MAGA’ Style Takedown

Christopher Nolan’s big screen adaptation of Homer’s ancient epic has been one of the most talked about releases of the year, pulling in massive numbers at the box office while also stirring plenty of debate among critics and classicists alike. The film has sailed past 650 million dollars worldwide since its release, a staggering figure for a project rooted in a 2,800 year old poem.

Much of that conversation has centered on ‘The Odyssey’ translator Emily Wilson, whose acclaimed 2017 translation Nolan repeatedly credited as an inspiration for his script. Wilson penned a review of the film for the London Review of Books titled “An Uncomplicated Man,” which quickly went viral. In it, she argued the film lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth, calling its narrative structure gimmicky and its writing abysmal. She went as far as to say she would be ashamed to have written any part of the script.

That review has now pulled celebrated novelist Joyce Carol Oates into the fray. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Oates defended Nolan’s film against Wilson’s viral takedown, taking specific issue with the tone of the critique. Oates wrote on X that Wilson’s tone of dismissal and haughty superiority struck a sour note with her.

Oates did not stop there. She argued that rather than disagreeing with interpretations of Homer in a collegial manner, Wilson, who has benefited enormously from Nolan’s film, was speaking in the crude language of MAGA folks attacking someone with different ideas. It was a pointed comparison from an author not shy about wading into cultural flashpoints on social media.

The Blonde novelist went further in her posts, suggesting a translator of all people, someone beholden to a text and in service to that text, should be a bit more thoughtful and respectful of others acting in good faith. Despite the sharp words for Wilson, Oates made clear she is firmly in Nolan’s corner. She said she highly recommends both Nolan’s film and the 1997 miniseries co-produced by Francis Ford Coppola, noting the two adaptations are notably different in tone and casting.

Wilson’s original critique wasn’t limited to the screenplay itself. She also argued that the film’s non-white stars, including Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Himesh Patel, Corey Hawkins and Travis Scott, were largely relegated to loyal sidekick roles supporting the white lead’s journey home. Even so, Wilson acknowledged in a separate interview with the Sunday Times that the film’s release remains something worth celebrating, since it is driving new interest in Homer and boosting translation sales, including her own.

Whatever the critical back and forth, audiences don’t seem to be siding with Wilson at the box office. The film opened with an A CinemaScore and a 96 percent audience score, numbers that suggest the culture war swirling around ‘The Odyssey’ hasn’t dented its popularity one bit. With two major literary voices now publicly clashing over Nolan’s vision, do you think Oates was right to call out Wilson’s tone, or does the translator’s original critique of the film hold up under scrutiny?