Actor Colman Domingo guest hosted Jimmy Kimmel Live on July 21, bringing sharp comedy to the ongoing backlash over Christopher Nolan’s casting choices in The Odyssey, particularly Lupita Nyong’o’s role as Helen of Troy.
During his opening monologue, Domingo responded directly to critics who had complained about the film’s diverse cast. He played a clip of podcaster Chris Cella arguing that “casting a Black woman as Helen of Troy is like casting a Black man to play Abraham Lincoln or a white dude to play MLK.” Domingo’s retort was swift: “Well, not exactly. Because MLK was real, and Helen of Troy is as real as Harry Potter.”
The actor then pivoted to his own mock defense of the casting. “I’ll be honest, I agree with that strange little dude,” Domingo said. “Helen of Troy shouldn’t have been played by a Black woman. She should have been played by a Black man, specifically me. Daddy wants his Oscar!” The audience erupted in cheers.
Domingo concluded with a pointed alternative suggestion for those upset about diversity in the film. “I have a message for everyone who was upset about diversity in The Odyssey. If you want to see a film with a cast of all white people who are cursed by the gods,” he paused for effect, “the Melania movie is currently streaming.” He then performed a quick vaudeville jig for comedic effect, drawing more laughs from the studio audience.
The monologue struck at the heart of a months-long controversy surrounding Nolan’s adaptation. The film has faced sustained criticism from conservative commentators and online critics over its casting of Nyong’o, as well as transgender actor Elliot Page and rapper Travis Scott. Some critics claimed the choices contradicted Homer’s original text, though Helen of Troy is a mythological character who does not appear in the epic poem itself—she is only referenced as one of the most beautiful women in the world.
Christopher Nolan has publicly dismissed the backlash as irrelevant to the filmmaking process. “That’s what adaptation is,” he said in a July interview, according to reporting on his statements. Nyong’o herself responded to criticism in May, telling Elle magazine: “I’m very supportive of Chris’ intention with it and with the version of this story that he is telling. Our cast is representative of the world. I’m not spending my time thinking of a defense. The criticism will exist whether I engage with it or not.”
The Odyssey has proven commercially successful despite the controversy. The film opened to $124.5 million domestically and $264 million globally in its opening weekend, making it Christopher Nolan’s biggest box office debut and 2026’s largest live-action opening, according to Variety and The Guardian.
Sources
- USA Today — Full transcript and context of Colman Domingo’s Kimmel monologue, including his quotes about Helen of Troy and the Melania Trump reference
- HuffPost — Coverage of Domingo’s guest hosting appearance and the Odyssey casting jokes
- The Daily Beast — Additional reporting on Domingo’s monologue and its commentary on the casting backlash
- Variety — Box office figures for The Odyssey opening weekend and Christopher Nolan’s prior comments on the casting
- The Guardian — Global box office opening weekend figures for The Odyssey
- People.com — Lupita Nyong’o’s statement about the casting and her response to criticism
- Fox News — Background on the casting controversy and the types of criticism directed at the film
