Joyce Carol Oates Defends The Odyssey After Criticisms of ‘No Sex Scenes’
Joyce Carol Oates Defends The Odyssey After Criticisms of ‘No Sex Scenes’
Vritti JoharThu, July 30, 2026 at 4:07 AM UTC
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Photo Credit: Universal Pictures
Acclaimed author Joyce Carol Oates had strong words for critics tearing into Christopher Nolan’s latest epic. Oates responded to Emily Wilson’s harsh review of The Odyssey, defending the filmmaker’s right to reimagine Homer’s classic.
Joyce Carol Oates defends Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey after criticism from Emily Wilson
Joyce Carol Oates defended Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey after Emily Wilson criticized the film in the London Review of Books. Wilson, whose 2017 translation of Homer’s epic remains widely acclaimed, wrote that the adaptation “has nothing convincing to say” about its themes. She added, “I would be ashamed to have written any part of this script.”
Oates responded on X, taking direct aim at Wilson’s approach to the criticism. She wrote, “Her tone of dismissal & haughty superiority strike a sour note.” Oates compared Wilson’s language to “the crude language of MAGA folks attacking someone with ideas that differ from hers.” She also noted that Wilson “has benefited enormously from Nolan’s film.”
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Furthermore, the novelist argued that any creator should have the freedom to reinterpret classical material. Oates stated she sees “no reason why Nolan, or anyone else, should not re-imagine/re-envision a classical hero through the prism of his own invention.” She also pointed out that Homer’s Odysseus engages in acts modern readers would find troubling. In Nolan’s version, she noted, “even such a man is capable of conscience & remorse eventually.”
Additionally, Oates addressed complaints about the film’s contemporary dialogue. She recommended Daniel Mendelsohn’s translation as “the most elegant” version of The Odyssey. However, she argued that using elevated language in the film would have drawn equal criticism. Despite this, Oates acknowledged she does not consider the adaptation “a great classic” but questioned the intensity of backlash.
Ultimately, the author called the hostile reception “chilling, dampening for any creative artist.” She urged critics to show more restraint, writing, “No one expects every work of art to be a classic, perfect… rage seems just weirdly inappropriate.”
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
