Joyce Carol Oates has criticised classicist Emily Wilson for the tone of her attack on Christopher Nolan’s film adaptation of The Odyssey, saying Wilson used language resembling that of “Maga folks”. Oates argued that Wilson should have been more respectful towards Nolan, particularly as the film may have increased sales of Wilson’s acclaimed 2017 translation of Homer. The dispute has drawn attention because Wilson’s translation was reportedly an important reference point for Nolan’s portrayal of Odysseus.

Wilson’s London Review of Books essay said Nolan’s film lacked psychological, political and ethical depth, describing its writing as “abysmal” and its characters as insufficiently developed. Oates had herself recently criticised Nolan’s version, arguing that a 1997 Hallmark television adaptation offered a more compelling interpretation of the relationship between Circe and Odysseus. Nolan’s film has otherwise received broad critical praise, while Universal has disputed suggestions that it was directly inspired by Wilson’s translation.