Re: Helen of Troy...I'm not defending Elon's ridiculous crusade, but there are a couple of tendencies in that vein that honestly irritate me (or have):
-This was awhile ago now, but there was a period in the mid-late 2010s when Hollywood was habitually remaking (or sequeling) movies with black and/or female leads because, like, equity or whatever. Which is fine enough in and of itself, though it's not really my cup of tea. But these movies would inevitably generate some Vox.com article that would be like "14 reasons why a Black Captain America is the most important thing to happen for civil rights since the Voting Rights Act of 1965," which was completely insane.
-If you're aiming for realism* - which The Odyssey, based as it is on a mythical story, is not - it can really stand out when you see, like, a black guy playing an 18th century English baron. It's fine in a show like The Great, which was obviously not trying to be realistic, but if you're adapting a Jane Austen novel and playing it totally straight and the Third Duke of Essex (yes, I am making this character and title up) shows up and he looks like Idris Elba, it's...pretty weird. Masterpiece shows, which my wife watches a lot, are rife with this sort of thing.
*I'd also say it's easier for period pieces set in the distant past - I mean, do we really have a sense of what Trojans looked like? Probably not. So, eh, who cares.
Honestly Matt Damon took me out of it with the odyssey far more than any of the actors generating controversy, fine acting and fantastic movie but just couldn’t really picture him as a rugged Greek hero
Re: Helen of Troy...I'm not defending Elon's ridiculous crusade, but there are a couple of tendencies in that vein that honestly irritate me (or have):
-This was awhile ago now, but there was a period in the mid-late 2010s when Hollywood was habitually remaking (or sequeling) movies with black and/or female leads because, like, equity or whatever. Which is fine enough in and of itself, though it's not really my cup of tea. But these movies would inevitably generate some Vox.com article that would be like "14 reasons why a Black Captain America is the most important thing to happen for civil rights since the Voting Rights Act of 1965," which was completely insane.
-If you're aiming for realism* - which The Odyssey, based as it is on a mythical story, is not - it can really stand out when you see, like, a black guy playing an 18th century English baron. It's fine in a show like The Great, which was obviously not trying to be realistic, but if you're adapting a Jane Austen novel and playing it totally straight and the Third Duke of Essex (yes, I am making this character and title up) shows up and he looks like Idris Elba, it's...pretty weird. Masterpiece shows, which my wife watches a lot, are rife with this sort of thing.
*I'd also say it's easier for period pieces set in the distant past - I mean, do we really have a sense of what Trojans looked like? Probably not. So, eh, who cares.
Honestly Matt Damon took me out of it with the odyssey far more than any of the actors generating controversy, fine acting and fantastic movie but just couldn’t really picture him as a rugged Greek hero
Totally get that age verification is struggling, but it's a noble effort nonetheless.