Let’s talk about Homer’s The Odyssey. 

No! Wait! Don’t leave! Wait – Christopher Nolan! Christopher Nolan! 

Yes! Christopher Nolan is planning a celluloid adaptation of Odysseus’ grueling adventure. 

Once the announcement was made, X poster Librarian Mama had a suggestion. 

“Emily Wilson’s translation is the best one in literally ages,” she said, adding it “has that sweet iambic pentameter to give it a ‘bouncy’ feel.” 

A classical studies professor at Penn, Emily Wilson has received accolades for her translations of both The Iliad and The Odyssey, winning a MacArthur Foundation Genius Award in 2019. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer identifies Wilson as the first woman to translate Homer’s Odyssey. According to PhillyVoice, she frames the politics and sexuality of Homer’s tales through a different lens. 

For example, in The Iliad, Helen and Achilles use the same derogatory Greek phrase – Achilles against Agamemnon, Helen against herself. 

Others often translate Achilles’ words as variations of its literal phrase, “dog-face.” But when Helen uses the same word, it is frequently translated as a version of “slut.” In 2023, Wilson told PhillyVoice, “Consistency would demand Achilles scream, ‘Agamemnon, you slut!’” 

“It would be, in a way, kind of great if they did do that,” Emily Wilson told PhillyVoice. She goes on to note Homer’s equitable approach to characters. “Everyone is treated with this synonymous sympathy and understanding,” she says. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer suggests, now that Librarian Mama’s X post has gone viral, Nolan might take note, using Wilson’s translation as the basis for his script. 

The film’s anticipated release is July 2026. 

May we humbly suggest a debut at Penn? 

It’s just a thought. 

Get the full story from The Inquirer here.