Filmmaker Christopher Nolan has been filming his upcoming The Odyssey, which stars Matt Damon and Tom Holland. Nolan has been criticised for filming the project in the disputed Western Sahara, 70% of which is occupied by Morocco.
Christopher Nolan faces backlash
As per a report in Variety, last week, after the shoot was wrapped up in the region, the Western Sahara International Film Festival (aka FiSahara), which takes place in Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria, released a statement urging Nolan to stop production.
"Dakhla is not just a beautiful location with cinematic sand dunes. Primarily, it is an occupied, militarised city whose indigenous Sahrawi population is subject to brutal repression by occupying Moroccan forces," read the statement.
"By filming part of The Odyssey in an occupied territory billed as a ‘news black hole’ by Reporters Without Borders, Nolan and his team, perhaps unknowingly and unwillingly, are contributing to the repression of the Sahrawi people by Morocco, and to the Moroccan regime’s efforts to normalise its occupation of Western Sahara," said FiSahara director María Carrión.
"We’re sure that if they understood the full implications of filming a high-profile movie in a territory whose Indigenous peoples are unable to make their own films about their stories under occupation, Nolan and his team would be horrified."
Javier Bardem, who has appeared at FiSahara in the past, shared the statement on his Instagram handle.
Why is the Western Sahara disputed?
Western Sahara is classified as "non-self-governing" by the United Nations. The region is the home to the Indigenous Sahrawi people, and is the last remaining African colonial state to achieve independence. Morocco is still claiming control over the majority of its land.
The Odyssey has been filmed in Morocco, Greece and Italy. It will hit theatres on July 17, 2026.
Universal and Nolan are yet to comment on the matter.
