Christopher Nolan faces backlash for filming The Odyssey in occupied Western Sahara

#Christopher Nolan’s upcoming historic epic The #Odyssey is underneath scrutiny following stories that the manufacturing filmed a part of the film in Dakhla, a metropolis situated in #Western Sahara — a territory 70% occupied by #Morocco. The area stays categorised by the #United Nations as “non-self-governing,” and has lengthy been the topic of a territorial dispute between #Morocco and the Indigenous Sahrawi individuals.

Nolan, who spent 4 days filming in Dakhla, has been criticised by human rights teams and cultural advocates for inadvertently aligning with #Morocco’s ongoing management of the area. The Western #Sahara International Film Festival (FiSahara), which operates out of #Sahrawi refugee camps in #Algeria, issued a public enchantment to Nolan to halt any additional manufacturing actions in Dakhla and take a stand towards what they describe as “army occupation.”

“Dakhla isn’t just a good looking place with cinematic sand dunes,” learn the assertion from FiSahara. “It is an occupied and militarised metropolis whose Indigenous Sahrawi inhabitants is subjected to brutal repression.” The pageant urged Nolan’s staff to rethink their participation in what they see because the cultural normalisation of an unresolved colonial state of affairs.

Festival director María Carrión said that by filming in a area the place native Sahrawi voices are systematically silenced, Nolan and his crew could also be unintentionally complicit in suppressing the very tales the Sahrawi individuals are unable to inform. “We’re positive that in the event that they understood the complete implications… they might be horrified,” she mentioned.

Actor Javier Bardem, who has beforehand supported the Sahrawi trigger, amplified FiSahara’s message on social media, calling consideration to the erasure of Sahrawi identification and the broader position Western governments play in supporting the Moroccan occupation.

Meanwhile, the Moroccan Cinematographic Center has welcomed the undertaking, with director Reda Benjelloun calling the shoot in Dakhla “extraordinarily necessary” and expressing hope it should increase future international movie manufacturing within the area.

The #Odyssey, starring Matt Damon, Zendaya, Anne Hathaway, and Tom Holland, is slated for a worldwide launch on July 17, 2026. It has additionally been filmed in Italy, Greece, and different components of #Morocco. Universal Pictures is distributing the movie.