Episode summary
Ben Shapiro weighs in on multiple controversies surrounding Christopher Nolan's upcoming film The Odyssey, predicting the various casting disputes will not significantly impact the movie's box office performance. Shapiro focuses primarily on two casting decisions: Elliot Page (whom he repeatedly refers to by former name Ellen Page) playing a soldier in the Trojan War, and Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy. He calls Page's casting incredibly stupid woke acknowledgement while repeatedly misgendering the actor and claiming Page suffers from mental disturbance. Shapiro argues that unlike other recent woke casting controversies such as Disney's Snow White, The Odyssey will likely succeed because Nolan's films are event movies where politics remain secondary to spectacle. He notes the film is tracking for a $110-120 million domestic opening and $220-250 million worldwide, with theaters already sold out. Shapiro also criticizes Nyong'o for comments suggesting Homer gave insufficient attention to women in his epic, calling her remarks incredibly ignorant and accusing her of not reading the source material. He lists numerous powerful female characters in Homer's work including Athena, Penelope, Circe, and Calypso to counter her claim. Throughout the episode, Shapiro maintains he will reserve final judgment until viewing the completed film, acknowledging that none of the cast members are actually Greek and that casting controversies typically do not translate to box office failure.
