There are so many storylines related to Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey – within the film itself and orbiting the film if you expand the conversation to include its cast, and the gossip, whether it’s about the box office or Tomdaya or award season chances. Probably not surprising given the hype surrounding the movie and the size of the ensemble. So now it’s Travis Scott’s turn to be in the spotlight repping the film and using the momentum to expand his own empire.

Last week in a post about The Odyssey ahead of its release I wrote about the debate among purists over Nolan’s vision and his desire to make the movie accessible to a modern audience. That intention is clear, right from the opening beats, because the first character to speak in the film is Travis’s Bard – a deliberate decision from a director as exacting as Nolan to state his thesis, which is that Homer’s works are foundational texts for cinematic storytelling. This story is every story, this movie is every movie. This poetry is the great great great great grandfather of all poetry.

So it makes all the sense to open the movie with the poetry of these times: rap. To draw a throughline between how ancient Greeks shared history and current events to Shakespearean times when tales of woe and weal and romance and tragedy were told on a round stage, to where we are now, as rappers rule from the street corner to the stadiums. Hip-hop is the most culturally disruptive and influential artform of the century, and in casting Travis Scott as the MC at castle Ithaca mythologising Odysseus’s victory in Troy, Nolan is savvily whetting a new generation’s appetite for the classics.

But this isn’t just stunt casting. The Odyssey is not Travis’s first appearance in a feature film and they’ve worked together before on Tenet, when Nolan asked Travis to contribute music to the soundtrack. In addition to acting in The Odyssey, Travis also co-wrote the end credits song “When I’m Home” which will likely be submitted for consideration at the Oscars for Best Original Song. It’s a discordant track, I’m not sure Academy members will get down with it, especially since Taylor Swift is out here pushing for a nomination and her contender is much more melodic, goes down a lot easier. But The Odyssey will be carrying a lot of weight coming into award season, with its box office, bolstered by Nolan’s status as the most slugger of all Hollywood directors right now, so while “When I’m Home” might not win, it’s not a longshot for a nomination. Plus, as we’ve seen, early campaigning is already underway.

Travis covers the latest issue of Variety, much of the interview is grounded in The Odyssey but the other takeaway is that Travis is targeting Hollywood, more acting and producing work. He just signed a deal with Paramount Pictures, nothing in development yet, but they want a first look at whatever he might be cooking, and it’s not like he hasn’t delivered in other streams. He holds claim to the highest-grossing solo hip-hop tour of all time. His partnership deals are instant top sellers. They’re teaching his artist-business blueprint at the university level. He has a massive fanbase, and now he gets to boast that he’s in the most high-key movie of the year.

Which, back to the gossip, sets up in an interesting potential “red carpet collision” at the Oscars. The Odyssey vs Dune 3. Travis, Kylie Jenner, and Timothée Chalamet all on the same award circuit. I want it!

 

Photo credits: Greg Swales for Variety

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