Author Joyce Carol Oates has publicly defended Christopher Nolan's film adaptation of The Odyssey after classicist and translator Emily Wilson published a scathing review of the movie. Oates criticised Wilson's tone as one of "dismissal & haughty superiority", arguing that Wilson, who had "benefited enormously" from the film's success, was attacking Nolan in bad faith rather than engaging in scholarly debate. The exchange has reignited a wider literary spat over the creative liberties taken in adapting Homer's epic for the screen.

Wilson, known for her acclaimed translations of the Iliad and Odyssey, wrote in the London Review of Books that Nolan's film "lacks many of the elements that make the poem great", criticising its writing, characterisation and narrative structure, and raising ethical concerns about filming in occupied territory. Oates, responding on X to a commenter who found Wilson's review unfairly harsh, said she recommended both Nolan's version and a 1997 miniseries starring Armand Assante, arguing there is no reason a director should not "re-imagine" a classical hero in his own way. She also likened Wilson's rhetoric to that of "MAGA folks" attacking those who hold differing views.