The right's outrage over Elliot Page's casting in 'The Odyssey' obscures Achilles' own queerness - LGBTQ Nation

Right-wing voices criticized a film adaptation of The Odyssey, reacting to casting news involving Lupita Nyong’o and speculation about Elliot Page. Elon Musk and other social media figures amplified outrage, claiming the casting “ruins Homer” and questioning whether Page could portray a battle-famous character. The backlash grew despite Page not being confirmed for Achilles and despite Achilles appearing only briefly in The Odyssey. The only available evidence came from a few seconds in the second official trailer, showing Page’s mud-covered character asking Odysseus, “Who’s looking after your wife and son?” The scene’s dark setting resembles Hades, suggesting Page may play Elpenor, a crew member who dies and later speaks to Odysseus.

"Musk, alongside hundreds of right-wing culture warriors algorithmically boosted on his platform, have spent the past few weeks fuming over the news that Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o is playing Helen of Troy, and that transgender actor Elliot Page might be playing Achilles. One right-wing influencer described the casting of Page as Achilles as "the final straw to ruin Homer." Another pundit, in a post that received over 130,000 likes, asked how a "scrawny little female" could possibly play a character famed for his battle prowess."

"When looking at the countless viral social media posts lambasting the idea of Page as Achilles, one would never guess that Achilles is a fictional character, not a historical figure, and he only shows up in The Odyssey for one brief scene. You'd also never guess from the outrage that Page hasn't even been confirmed to play Achilles. Nolan and Universal Studios have stayed quiet about Page's role, so all fans have to work with are a few seconds from the second official trailer for the film."

"The trailer shows Page's character, covered in mud, telling Odysseus, "Who's looking after your wife and son?" The dark setting of the scene resembles descriptions of Hades' underworld, so Page likely plays Elpenor, the youngest member of Odysseus' crew. Elpenor falls off his boat, drowns, then returns to talk to Odysseus as a dead man. Odds are that Page's role will be minor, his character won't have any fight scenes, and he will not be playing the famous warrior Achilles."

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