Fans baffled by anachronistic accents in Nolan’s The Odyssey

Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic, The Odyssey, just got its most detailed trailer yet. But while fans are marvelling at the cinematic scope and star-studded cast, they are completely distracted by one unexpected detail: everyone sounds American.

For decades, Hollywood has relied on an unwritten rule for historical and fantasy epics – when in ancient Rome or Greece, use a British accent. From Gladiator to Game of Thrones, the dialect has been the go-to sound to convey a timeless, mythic quality.

Nolan, however, has thrown that rule out the window. In the new footage released by Universal on Tuesday, even English actors like Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson are sporting American accents. At one point, Matt Damon's Odysseus leads a battle charge by shouting a very modern, "Let's go!"

The internet quickly had a field day. Comments across YouTube and Reddit poked fun at the contemporary dialogue. "It sounds like they're trying to have an epic conversation on the sidewalk outside a Starbucks," one user joked. Another quipped about the historical inaccuracy of Odysseus having a "Boston accent".

While some fans defended the shift as a refreshing break from tired cinematic clichés, the casual phrasing in a sword-and-sandals epic with so much gravitas has definitely left audiences amused.