Christopher Nolan breaks silence on Travis Scott casting criticism in The Odyssey: 'I cast him because...'

Christopher Nolan is a director known for his perfection. Three years after delivering the masterpiece Oppenheimer, Nolan is back, this time with the period epic The Odyssey.

The film is undoubtedly one of the most highly anticipated movies of the summer, and ahead of its release, the director has addressed several questions regarding the film, casting, and more.

In an interview with The Times, Nolan also discussed casting rapper Travis Scott and the backlash the decision has drawn.

In the movie, he cast Scott as a bard. For those who don’t know, a bard is a person who recites poems, myths, and heroic tales with music. For this role, he wanted someone connected to that world. That’s why the Tenet director chose him to play the role.

“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.

Adding on his casting, Academy Award–winning composer Ludwig Goransson said,''Chris had this idea of the sound of the lyre being the pluck of Odysseus’ bow.”

The director has always been very particular with casting. For Interstellar, he hired a team of scientists to make sure the physics was as accurate as possible. He has brought the same enthusiasm to The Odyssey.

“For Interstellar, you’re looking at, ‘What is the best speculation of the future?’ When you’re looking at the ancient past, it’s actually the same thing. ‘What is the best speculation and how can I use that to create a world?’” the director shared.

“Hopefully they’ll enjoy the film, even if they don’t agree with everything,” he says. “We had a lot of scientists complain about Interstellar. But you just don’t want people to think that you took it on frivolously.”

More about The Odyssey

The Odyssey, an historical drama, is set to hit the theatres on July 17. Starring Matt Damon, the movie is based on Homer's Greek epic and revolves around the King Odysseus (Matt Damon), and his journey back home to his wife, Penelope (Anne Hathaway).

Tom Holland plays Telemachus, Robert Pattinson as Antinous, Lupita Nyong’o as Helen of Troy, Zendaya as Athena, Charlize Theron as Calypso, Jon Bernthal as Menelaus, and Benny Safdie as Agamemnon.

Nolan and the world both have huge expectations for the movie. Made with a massive budget of $250 million, this is the director’s first film shot entirely on 70mm IMAX cameras.