US EditionChristopher Nolan Faces Backlash for Filming ‘The Odyssey’ in Occupied Western Sahara
WESTERN SAHARA, JUL 29 – Human rights groups and the UN cite ongoing repression in Western Sahara, where Nolan films, a territory home to 612,000 people and disputed for 50 years.
- On July 30, 2025, Oscar-winning filmmaker Christopher Nolan faced backlash for shooting The Odyssey in the Western Sahara, a disputed territory under international scrutiny.
- The territory has long been administered by Morocco, which occupies part of Western Sahara, a UN-listed non-self-governing disputed territory with Dakhla in the Moroccan region.
- Amid criticism, FiSahara described Dakhla as 'a disputed territory and militarised city' whose Sahrawi population faces brutal repression, urging solidarity.
- Moroccan officials, with Reda Benjelloun calling the shoot 'extremely important,' highlight Dakhla’s potential for attracting major foreign productions.
- Earlier this month, The Odyssey's filming in Western Sahara sparked controversy, and IMAX 70mm screenings of the $250 million US movie sold out earlier this month.
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16 Articles
FiSahara Festival accuses Christopher Nolan and his cast of contributing to the legitimization of Moroccan occupation by filming in Dajla, generating international criticisms and calls to suspend production in the area
The British-US-American director Christopher Nolan is currently filming Homer's heroic epic "Odyssee" - the film is scheduled to enter the cinemas next year. Now Nolan is accused that part of the filming takes place in Western Sahara - in the area controlled by Morocco.
The International Film Festival of Western Sahara (FiSahara) has issued a statement accusing director Christopher Nolan and the protagonists of his new film, La odyssey, of contributing “to the repression of the Saharawi people by Morocco” by filming part of the film “in an occupied territory” and demanding that it immediately suspend the filming. The distributor of the film, which is scheduled to be premiered in cinemas on 17 July 2026, put on …
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