Christopher Nolan’s epic page-to-screen adaptation of The Odyssey has become one of the biggest talking points of the 2026 movie calendar. It has been tearing up the box office and earning lots of praise from critics. However, Emily Wilson, one of the best-known modern translators of Homer’s ancient work, made waves this week when she criticized the movie for its lack of sex scenes and food that looks “horrible,” among other things. Do not expect her to walk that opinion back, either, because she is now defending her take on this blockbuster.
Speaking on NPR’s Fresh Air, Wilson revisited the line from her sharply critical London Review of Books review that has gone viral. She admitted that her complaint about the food was quite literal, even if it also pointed toward a larger problem she had with Nolan’s version of Odysseus. She explained:
