Christopher Nolan explains Travis Scott’s role in ‘The Odyssey’: “Oral poetry, analogous to rap”
The casting of Travis Scott in Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ has sparked debate. The director defends the rapper as the heir to the Homeric bard and sets the premiere for July 17.
Christopher Nolan never leaves anyone indifferent, and, as one might expect, ‘The Odyssey’—his most ambitious film—is no exception. His casting decisions have rarely been questioned, but there have been a few in this project that have raised eyebrows—most notably that of rapper Travis Scott. Scott will play a bard, and Nolan has justified his inclusion as a way to represent “oral poetry.”
“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 in an interview with Time magazine. Nolan emphasizes that his intention was not to be eccentric, but rather to reinforce the idea that great epic stories have always changed in form, but not in function: to pass on tales, emotions, and mythology from one generation to the next.
Nolan sees Travis Scott as a contemporary counterpart to the Homeric bard, someone who fits naturally into the spirit of ‘The Odyssey’, understood not only as an epic film but as an oral narrative brought into the 21st century.
Born in Houston in 1991 as Jacques Berman Webster II, Scott grew up immersed in Southern hip-hop, soul, and jazz. After dropping out of college to devote himself entirely to music and catching Kanye West’s attention, his debut album, ‘Rodeo’ (2015), put him on the map, and he later reached No. 1 on the Billboard chart with his second album, ‘Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight’ (2017). With a total of four studio albums to his credit, he is one of the most influential hip-hop artists of the past decade in the United States—a fact that hasn’t stopped people from questioning his appearance in ‘The Odyssey,’ which will be more than just a cameo.
When does ‘The Odyssey’ premiere?
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‘The Odyssey’ will hit theaters on July 17. Nolan is set to release a truly ambitious film featuring a star-studded cast—even more so than the British director is known for. Starring Matt Damon in the lead role, he is joined by Robert Pattinson, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal, Lupita Nyong’o, and Mia Goth, among others.
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