Tech mogul Elon Musk has promised to task Mel Gibson with harnessing artificial intelligence to create his own version of The Odyssey after becoming a vocal critic of Christopher Nolan’s adaptation.
The first trillionaire in modern history made public his vision on X Tuesday evening, sharing footage of a Grok-made Odyssey scene inspired by Homer’s epic poem.
“Before this year ends, Grok Imagine will make a full-length movie of ‘The Odyssey’ that is historically accurate and true to the art of Homer,” Musk wrote, without offering any further details on the venture. Watch footage of the AI-generated “Odyssey” below.
Then in a separate follow-up X post, Musk noted he was “down” with one fan’s suggestion of giving “Mel Gibson $100 million to film an Odyssey adaptation with painstakingly historically accurate ships, armour, weapons and casting, with all dialogue taken straight from the original poem and delivered in Homeric Greek.”
The Wrap notes Musk has been sharing his displeasure at the new film widely, “given he’s repeatedly spoken out against the Matt Damon-led film for its casting decisions.”
The outlet notes:
For instance, back in January, Musk declared that “Chris Nolan [had] lost his integrity” in response to a post that called his upcoming film “an insult to the author” because of Lupita Nyong’o’s casting as Helen of Troy in the adaptation.
Then, in May, Musk took aim at Nolan’s “The Odyssey” once more, this time co-signing right-wing fueled ire over the confirmation of Nyong’o’s casting. Specifically, after conservative commentator Matt Walsh suggested that Christopher Nolan only gave Nyong’o the part to avoid being called “racist,” Musk simply responded with the word “True.”
Despite criticism from Musk and other Hollywood observers, The Odyssey – an R-rated movie with a three-hour runtime – is being well received at the box office.
As Breitbart News reported, Nolan’s creation is overperforming big time with a $120 million opening this past weekend.
Projections had stood in the $80 million to $90 million range.