Christopher Nolan Was Right about The Odyssey Casting |
History Can’t Hide
Gen Z Historian, Premiered Jul 17, 2026
We discuss race in Ancient Greece, the history of traveling stories (stories where each storyteller could become the center of the narrative), and how language has changed through centuries and color terms referenced contrast rather than race.
Christopher Nolan's casting in The Odyssey has sparked controversy. Let's talk about it.
Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post showcases two YouTube podcasts about The Odyssey epic poem and presents some examples of comments from those podcasts' discussion threads with a focus on the subject of race in ancient Greece.
The content of this post is presented for historical, folkloric, socio-cultural, and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to all those who are quoted in this pancocojams post.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/07/race-standards-of-beauty-and-odyssey.html for the closely related pancocojams post entitled "
That post includes a brief Wikipedia excerpt about The Odyssey epic poem.
****
SELECTED COMMENTS FROM THIS PODCAST'S DISCUSSION THREAD
All of these comments are from July 17, 2026 to July 30, 2026.
These comments include some statements that I disagree with.
Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cG1MXIHsSkc
1.@mreed1685
"This documentary is incredibly well written, researched, and
produced. Seriously, like BBC or PBS level production values and quality.
Excellent!"
**
2. @flygrrrrl3753
"Eartha Kitt played Helen of Troy long before Lupita! These
people should read about Andromeda, the Ethiopian princess in Greek mythology
whose beauty got her in a lot of trouble."
**
Reply
3. @marvel22-mf1js
"A black woman played helen of troy in Xena: Warrior
Princess a spin of show of Hercules: The
Legendary."
**
Reply
4. @marvel22-mf1js
"Galyn Görg (July 15, 1964 - July 14, 2020) was an actress
and dancer. She played Princess Anuket on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and
Helen on Xena: Warrior Princess."
**
Reply
5. @flygrrrrl3753
"Odysseus is described in ancient texts as having black skin.
But in modern texts, they translated it to “sun tanned”. Whitewashed! Just like
they do with Jesus."
**
6. @Day0One
"Black people lived in and traveled through Europe, the
Middle East, and North Africa during the medieval era (roughly 5th to 15th
centuries). While their presence was generally rare in inland Northern and
Central Europe, Black individuals were recorded in Southern Europe, England,
and the Islamic world. Historical records and archaeological evidence show the
diverse roles Black people held during the Middle Ages.
Exploring these histories reveals a far more cosmopolitan
medieval world than is often depicted in popular culture..."
**
Reply
7. @EggsBenedict5306
"Yes. Herodotus wrote on Africa in around 500bc and
intercultural exchange was occurring centuries prior. It may have been
noteworthy but not unknown to have black folk in Greek society and certainly
Europeans were visiting Africa."
**
Reply
8. @JerseyGirl_Too
"@EggsBenedict5306
Helen of Troy was the daughter of a local king who was the son of a local king,
etc.. even though Africans may have been in Greece, Helen was from the local
population"
**
Reply
9. @EggsBenedict5306
"@JerseyGirl_Too Her mother was Spartan. Tyndareus (the local
king, son of a local king etc.) was her step father. Zeus was her actual father
and Helen was birthed from an egg. Ancient Greeks were not typically fair of
complexion and Zeus could presumably impart whatever characteristics he chose.
Further Helen's mother was possibly of divine heritage as well. Whatever the
case she most certainly was not simply "of the local population" as
she was both the daughter of gods and a fictional character."
**
Reply
10. @JerseyGirl_Too
"In the Iliad, according to Homer, she was described as
“White-armed”, which was intended to imply she stayed inside a lot, indicating
her status as a noble woman who did not work outside. Take it for what it’s worth"
**
Reply
11. @danielletremblay2434
"@EggsBenedict5306 A
MYTHICAL character to be exact-symbolically representing very human moral and
political dilemmas in the lifetime of Homer…"
**
Reply
12. @StevenHarris-xs7nj
"@JerseyGirl_Too there's no evidence of helen of troy's
existance. so far as we know, it's not even a legend. it's a MYTH."
**
Reply
13. @Zuks-i3g
" @EggsBenedict5306 Being the daughter of Zeus does not make her
culturally or ethnically blank, and there is no ancient source saying Zeus gave
her whatever appearance you would personally prefer. When we read stories and
myths, we imagine the culture of the people represented in them. The Greeks did
not shy away from identifying people of other ethnicities, so I don’t even know
what point you’re trying to make here. When Greek sources describe Helen as the
most beautiful woman in the world, they are applying Hellenic standards of
beauty. Yes, those standards were restrictive and narrow, but they were Greek
standards. She would have been imagined as Greek and as embodying Greek ideals
of female beauty. Why is this so offensive to you all that you think it needs
revising? You find the most nitpicky points to argue over for absolutely no
good reason that I can see."
Reply
14.
"@StevenHarris-xs7nj She was Greek, and she embodied Greek
standards of beauty. Should those standards be challenged? Yes. Helen was
Greek, I'm not sure where you're all going with this constant picking and
picking to make points to defend Nolan's choices. Really, the whole cast is not
Greek, not one. Why does that not bother you? And don't come back at me with
what about this movie and that movie. We are talking about this movie."
**
Reply
15. @JosephSilas-h6e
"@EggsBenedict5306
The greeks thought of
Ethiopia as a land of magic and myth."
**
16. @Day0One
"According to the mythological accounts of the Trojan War,
there were Black warriors involved. The most prominent figure is Memnon, the
King of Aethiopia (a term the ancient Greeks used for people of African
descent), who arrived to fight on the side of the Trojans.Memnon is a major
figure in the epic cycle and is explicitly described in Homer's Odyssey as a
legendary Black warrior and a powerful ally who came to Troy's defense.
According to myth, he was a great hero who even killed Antilochus (a close friend
of Achilles) before being slain by Achilles in single combat. While the Trojan
War itself is largely a legendary and mythical event, the inclusion of Memnon
and his forces reflects the ancient Greeks' awareness of Black African
populations, like the Nubians, with whom they had established trade, cultural,
and military connections through Egypt."
**
17. @rocketb00t
"People can say whatever they want but they can't deny the
casting of Nyong'o was a bold move, and drew a ton of attention, both positive
and negative. In modernity, how better to represent a character who was
considered the most beautiful in the land? I'm sure Helen of Troy had just as
many haters because of her notoriety. In the age of social media, people like
that don't launch 1000 ships, but they do prompt endless YouTube videos and
substance articles and Twitter meltdowns etc etc. Nyong'o nailed the role in
that respect!"
**
Reply
18. @romxxii
"She isn't the first black actor cast in a
traditionally non-black role. Denzel Washington was Macbeth in 2021's The
Tragedy of Macbeth. Idris Elba was the Norse god Heimdall for over a decade in
the MCU. Helen of Troy was literally a black woman in Xena: Warrior Princess"
**
19. @aplatin3094
"I'm glad you highlighted Brett Cooper's comment. No matter
how many ways you slice it, the objection to Lupita is over a dark-skinned
woman being a symbol of beauty. It is not over race because I think Zendaya or
Beyonce as Helen would have been acceptable. It is not over ethnicity or
culture unless you object to the entire cast because they are not of Greek
origin. It is not over "historical accuracy" because the work itself
is not historically accurate, nor is it meant to be. (Also, how can you be
historically accurate about a character that hatched from an egg?) That leaves skin color. The idea that a
dark-skinned woman can be the symbol of beauty is too much for some people to
accept."
**
20. @tomasrazelo3271
"The whole planet has been mixing and no group has lived
completely isolated but today a black actor playing the role of a Greek Spartan
woman is publicity. There was no mention of her being part or full African in
the texts. Therefore, any movie in any timeframe using a black woman to play
Hellen is basically looking for attention and they got the publicity they
wanted. But to me this is not accurate.
They should have focused on the Ethiopians coming to help
the Trojans. There’s enough story there to include Africans in the movie
without trying to use mixing as an excuse to cast a black Helen."
**
Reply
21. @danielletremblay2434
"@tomasrazelo3271 BUT
these are STORIES open to interpretations and to a lot of different visions by
our contemporaries. STOP the cultural WAR FFS!"
**
Reply
22. @flygrrrrl3753
"@t @tomasrazelo3271
They make Jesus out to be white too and how old is his story?"
**
23. @FindingGod365
"Ancient Greece is long, long before the Middle Ages."
**
Reply
24. @Day0One
"FindingGod365 I'm very aware of that, sir... And I'm also aware that the poet Homer
mentions the Aithiopians (Ethiopians), whom the ancient Greeks situated to the
south and east. In both the Iliad and the Odyssey, they are described as living
at the distant edges of the world and are famously depicted as being favored by
the gods, with Zeus and other Olympians traveling to feast among them."
**
25. @barbthegreat586
"As a white Mediterranean, I find these discussions rather
... amusing? We come in all shapes and colours, I'm very pale and fair eyed but
have dark hair, to very, very dark people who're darker than most people of
African descent (but with no African facial features). Half of the
Mediterranean is African coast, do you really think that people didn't travel
and mix??? And yes, slavery was historically widespread among Europeans, white
Europeans enslaving other white Europeans.
Not to mention that Homer and ancient Greek mythology
mentions several Africans, Ethiopians, to be precise, like princess Andromeda
(who's also semi-goddess, the daughter of goddess Eos) and hero Memnon who
fought on the Trojan side)."
**
Reply
26. @leesahangel5814
"True! I knew a Sicilian Family in which the mother had pale
skin, blue eyes and red hair, while the father had more olive skin and brown
eyes. I was friends with one of their daughters who was a twin; she was very
dark with black curly hair, and her twin was slightly lighter with deep auburn
wavy hair! Yes, people come in all shapes and colours as you say! Looking at
the Greek Statues that have been colourized, many of the women have red hair.
They could have dyed it or they could be wearing wigs, or it could be natural.
Cleopatra VII was Macedonian and Historical texts have said that she had Auburn hair. I think the reason women are
shown lighter skinned than men in much of Greek Art is to show status; they
were able to stay out of the sun and didn't have to toil. While the men were
tan from being athletic and being warriors. That may have been why "white
arms" would be attractive in that time period because she was Royal and
could stay out of the sun🌞"
**
27. @reviewerreviewer1489
"Greeks didnt "identify" their own (typically
Mediterranean) phenotype with most "White" populations of today. But
they likely would have clearly identified Helen as "Ethiopian" if she
were Black. They had contact with Aksum and similar people, knew of them, and
they were very distinct. That wouldnt have likely been an omitted detail"
**
28. @none3193
"@historycanthide It is being retold and Greeks have been very
generous all these years. But it still remains their culture and folklore and
most interpretations so far where at least trying to honor the basics and bring
it as close as possible to the book and the Greek culture.
And to be clear, the only
thing that the book states about Helen's appearance were her very white
arms, specifically because the attire of the era was showing only the arms in
long dresses.
This was culturally appropriate and borderline racist
towards the Greeks.
Casting no Greeks in the main roles fundamentally
contradicts the very concept of inclusivity, especially when so many other
nationalities were included. Mexican, North Africa, Kenya, English etc. But
familiarity and cultural resemblance are what strike a chord with people all
around the globe, and we all know it. Whitewashing cultures and peoples is
wrong, and so is "black-washing," "Asian-washing," or any
other kind. Every culture and every people are hurt in the same way.
It would hurt Greeks just the same if Helen were portrayed
by a Japanese or an Arab actress, just as it would hurt their peoples if the
Queen of Sheba were portrayed by a pale Scandinavian.
Most humans on Earth want their most cherished folklore and literature to feel as familiar as possible. We simply owe it to one another to show respect and honor for the sake of Peace, until we all evolve to the point where none of this bothers anyone.
Until then, it is abusive, no matter where it comes from.
Greeks deserve to be honored and respected, just as we ought to honor every other people's folklore and cultural literature in the world, it is really that simple and loving."
**
Reply
29. @historycanthide
"Yes, the character in the Homeric imagination is not
Ethiopian or black-skinned at all. This is about whether she could be Black in
a modern retelling (Nolan's The Odyssey) based on the history of the story and
the myth (re: its cultural purpose and long-standing tradition of being
retold)."
**
Reply
30. @megascrn
"@historycanthide For the same reason that Robert De Niro can
not play Nelson Mandela. You keep forgetting that Greeks we still here and we
feel that you invading our culture, witch doesn't need retelling. You keep
saying that Odyssey is a myth, but you forget that Homer is placing his myth in
Greece with Greek characters. The effort
you put to support the woke agenda is ridicules!!"
**
Reply
31. @TJ-hs1qm
" @megascrn Nelson Mandela was a real historic person.
The Odyssey is made up folklore. A better comparison would be Snow White."
Reply
32.
"@megascrn
Do be clear, we are talking about Greece a few millennia
ago. They were not phenotypically homogenous back then, and like all parts of
Southern Europe, they have absorbed more populations from the surrounding
regions, especially Northern Europe, since the medieval through the modern
eras."
**
Reply
33. @barbthegreat586
"@megascrn Helen's
race is irrelevant for the story. Nelson Mandela's isn't."
**
34. @sedwillful
"@historycanthide Chapter 3 dissects the role of black
skin color in Aeschylus’s Suppliants (c. 463 BCE). In this tragedy, Danaus’s
black daughters, the Danaids, flee from Egypt to Argos to escape a forced
marriage to their Egyptian cousins. Their knowledge of Greek religious rites
convinces the Argive ruler, Pelasgus, that they are distant kin even though
this Greek identity is seemingly contradicted by their black skin. This chapter
asserts that the Danaids are sophisticated performers who successfully reduce
the relevance of their physical alterity and declare their hybrid identity as
black Egyptian Greeks.
SOURCE:
Derbew SF. Masks of Difference in Aeschylus’s Suppliants.
In: Untangling Blackness in Greek Antiquity. Cambridge University Press;
2022:66-97."
**
35. @barbthegreat586
"No, they wouldn't identify Helen as Ethiopian because Homer
is very vague and general in all his physical descriptions of the characters.
Odyssey, for example, is described both as black skinned with wooly hair AND as
a pasty beggar."
**
Reply
36. @rossmelnyk1900
"@barbthegreat586
No, Homer is actually fairly precise in his physical description of most
main characters, he doesn't describe Odysseus as black..he gives him typical
Mediterranean look.."
**
Reply
37. @kobaltkween
" @rossmelnyk1900 No,
"he" doesn't. Did you watch
the video? He described Odysseus as
black with wooly hair. He was disguised
as a pasty beggar by magic.
There were tons of ancient Greeks of African ancestry, as clearly shown in their artwork. Race was invented in the early sixteenth century by a member of the Portuguese court looking to justify his king's enslavement of 19,000 African people. Race isn't even in The Decameron written in the mid fourteenth century, which includes the story of an extremely beautiful woman treated much like Helen who is explicitly North African.
The whole point of ancient Greek and Roman society's greatness, from their perspective, was their cosmopolitan nature and cultural ties to powerful nations in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Tying them to the descendants of people they openly dehumanized and compared to animals while denying the existence of actual Greek citizens who modern society would label Black is weird and racist. You should think about why you need ancient Greeks to be a single race that didn't exist as such until 1.5 millennia later. Especially in a myth."
**
38. @TorqueMaester
"The actress does not look Ethopian-they are usually good
looking-with delicate features. She is not attactive."
Reply
39.
"@TorqueMaester Not
attractive to you. I and many other people see beauty. If I can see
phenotypical beauty in pale skinned people while not being white, why can’t
you?"
**
Reply
40. @sedwillful
"@TorqueMaester its like 80 or so ethnic groups in Ethiopia
kid. Maybe u mean Cushitic. We come in Bantu, Nilotic, Cushitic and Pygmy.
Racism is real huh"
**
41. @Abstraction-5249
"They don't have a problem with Lupita because she's
"not Greek." They have a problem with her because she's black.
Diane Kruger isn't Greek either, but they never complained
about her. Being German, you'd think Diane Kruger would be a terrible choice
for a Greek character."
**
42. @atonsungod
"I'm about to disappointment the racial purists. The Greeks
learned philosophy, science, mathematics from the ancient Egyptians.
"Ancient Egyptians" as in Black Africans. "No. The Egyptians
were 'Middle Eastern Arabs!' " No. Egyptians became mixed AFTER the Arab
Invasion in 600 A.D. Unless you believe the Arabs invaded themselves? Let's
return. I anticipated the tripe of the usual pedestrian racists. The pyramids
and Pharoahs predate the Trojan wars by 2,500 to 3,000 years. Sooo....the
fictional character Helen could certainly be "African?" Ironically,
those same people who argue she couldn't be historically Black are the same
people who would argue with you that Cleopatra was historically white! Do you
see the contradiction and hypocrisy 🤔 some folks ride with?
They are not to be taken seriously. "Whiteness" was a propaganda tool
after Bacon's rebellion. It's still working even to this day with twisted minds
corrupting the history of the ancient multicultural world who would find us
ridiculous and pathetic if they could see us now!
P.S. Hannibal was a Black African. North Africa. We see
Black Africans in classical European art. Remember the Moors? Putin thumbed the
West in the eye when he released ancient religious Christian paintings with
Black iconography. The Trump era is not the first to fail at rewriting history."
**
Reply
43. @Alexander-b3j5s
"Nice joke.
Sorry to break it to you but everything you said does not
exist in reality.
Try again do better.
Stop embarrassing yourself."
**
Reply
44. @atonsungod
"@Alexander-b3j5s For example? 😢😏"
**
Reply
45. @Alexander-b3j5s
"@atonsungod well for starters Greeks did not learn science
philosophy mathematics etc from the Egyptians.
We know that for as long as the Egyptian civilization
existed it always consisted of Mediterranean olive skin Egyptians in the north
and Nubian black Egyptians in the south.
Cleopatra was a Greek woman. Not black African.
Hannibal was not a Nubian black African.
The Moors were not black Africans."
46.@T
"My one critique of this documentary is I would have liked
you all to address the description of Helen's arms. She was described by Homer
as "leukolenos" which meant "white-armed", showcasing her
rank and nobility among the Greeks. I'm black American and I have no problem
with the deviation for the sake of art, but I think when addressing concerns of
accuracy, we also have to look at Homer's descriptions of this figure."
**
47. @TY-4DA-Ai
"This coming from the same people who make Egyptians and
Jesus White in every movie LOL"
**
48.@jimbox8762
"Helen of Troy is not a real person. Why not a woman of color play that fictional
character? I think Nolan has the right
to interpret the ancient myth character he wants."
**
49. @kobaltkween
"Could you maybe suggest a reading list on the historical tie
between white supremacy and classical studies?"
**
Reply
50. @Alexander-b3j5s
"This video is propaganda.
Go read greek mythology history by Greeks not Afrocentric
ideology."
**
Reply
51.
"@Alexander-b3j5s I read Bulfinch's and Graves' mythology long
ago. They both cite African
influences/origins for various Greek gods, like Athena. Part of the Odyssey takes place in Africa"
**
Reply
52.@Alexander-b3j5s
"@kobaltkween only
two encounters he had in Africa. And those were on the cost line in contact
with the Mediterranean sea. He never travelled south. He didn't come in contact
with Nubian black Africans.
Do better research"
**
Reply
53. @kobaltkween
"@Alexander-b3j5s
"They" is two of the most established, standard books on Greek
mythology? You're high".
**
54. @truthbetold818
"Europeans and only Europeans are the only people who believe
Africans just stayed on the continent of Africa. They believe the only way
blacks could be in a different continent was only through slavery. Blacks have
been travelling and settling throughout
the world since antiquity"
**
55. @eveangelic05
"Can a Black women play a character in a book written over
4000 years ago, which is fiction. Yes, yes she can. 4000 years ago people of
color were in that region heavily. Even King Mimnon was Black isn't it safe to
say he would have his people with him which would be Black. Why is this a
debate baffles the mind."
****
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