Alec Baldwin blasts Elon Musk for Lupita Nyong'o's ‘The Odyssey' criticism

Alec Baldwin has hit back at tech billionaire Elon Musk for criticising Lupita Nyong’o after the Oscar-winning actress was cast as Helen of Troy in Christopher Nolan's upcoming film The Odyssey. 

Taking to Instagram, the 68-year-old 30 Rock alum shared a photo of Nyong’o along with a direct message defending her role as the legendary demigoddess whose face famously launched a thousand ships. 

"Dear Elon… but she IS the most beautiful woman in the world…Alec," Baldwin wrote, publicly shutting down the online criticism aimed at the 43-year-old actress.

The row kicked off after conservative commentator Matt Walsh took to X on 12 May to slam the casting decision for the Christopher Nolan-directed feature. 

Walsh claimed that no one on the planet actually believes Nyong’o is the most beautiful woman in the world, accusing the filmmaker of cowardice and suggesting he only cast a Black actress to avoid being called racist.

Musk, 54, quickly echoed the sentiment by replying "True" to the post.

The Tesla tycoon then went a step further when asked why directors are keen to race-swap white characters, claiming that Nolan simply wants the awards and has lost his integrity by casting Nyong’o.

It isn't the first time Musk has taken aim at the casting choices for Nolan’s 55-year-old director's epic, as he previously became angry over rumours that transgender actor Elliot Page had been cast as the Trojan War hero Achilles, calling the idea one of the dumbest and most twisted things he had ever heard. 

After it was confirmed that Page would actually be portraying the character Elpenor, Musk shared a post denying the actor's masculinity.

The billionaire's remarks have drawn extra scrutiny given his long-standing estrangement from his own transgender daughter, Vivian.

Nolan has also faced separate backlash for adding rapper Travis Scott to the cast, but the filmmaker has firmly defended his vision. 

He explained that hiring the Sicko Mode artist was a conscious nod to the fact that The Odyssey was originally handed down through generations as oral poetry, which he views as deeply analogous to modern rap.

Despite the vocal internet trolls, Baldwin’s high-profile intervention shows that Hollywood's heavyweights are more than ready to stand up for their peers against tech mogul commentary.