Elon Musk announced Wednesday that he intends to use his AI platform, Grok Imagine, to produce a new film adaptation of Homer's "The Odyssey," which he stated will be "historically accurate and true to the art of Homer." The declaration comes after Musk publicly criticized director Christopher Nolan's casting decisions in his recent film adaptation of the epic poem.
Musk, 55, stated on his platform X that the AI-generated film will be completed before the end of the year. His comments were made in response to an AI-generated clip from Grok Imagine that utilized dialogue from Homer's "The Odyssey."
Musk has repeatedly voiced his disapproval of Nolan's casting choices, specifically the inclusion of Black actress Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy and transgender actor Elliot Page as Sinon. Musk previously posted in February that Nolan "has lost his integrity" in response to criticism of Nyong'o's casting, echoing sentiments from an X user who argued that Helen of Troy was fair-skinned and blonde.
He also agreed with a post from conservative personality Matt Walsh, who claimed that Nolan cast Nyong'o due to fear of being labeled racist if a white woman was cast in the role of "the most beautiful woman." Musk further criticized the casting of Page, reposting commentary that questioned the credibility of a transgender actor in a heroic warrior role, even speculating Page might play Achilles.
Musk suggested in May that Nolan's casting choices were motivated by a desire to "win awards." The film "The Odyssey," an interpretation of Homer's Greek poem, follows King Odysseus's journey home after the Trojan War and stars Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, and Charlize Theron. It has achieved significant box office success, grossing over $264 million in its opening weekend.
Actor Colman Domingo, serving as guest host on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," responded to Musk's announcement, quipping that a "historically accurate" version using AI would likely be "whiter than Christmas at Cracker Barrel." Domingo also questioned the premise of historical accuracy for a fictional work like "The Odyssey."