Nolan’s “The Odyssey” Filmed in Western Sahara Sparks International Controversy

Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi epic *The Odyssey* was shot in summer 2025 along the coast of Dakhla, a port city in Western Sahara. The production received “generous subsidies from the Moroccan state,” a detail that critics say lends legitimacy to Morocco’s control of the territory. An open letter signed by filmmakers Javier Bardem, Pedro Almodóvar and screenwriter Paul Laverty condemned the location choice, arguing that the consent obtained was solely from the occupying authority.

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

Western Sahara, an area “the size of Britain,” has been listed by the United Nations as a “non-self-governing territory” awaiting decolonization since Spain withdrew in 1975. Morocco’s annexation triggered a mass exodus of at least 40 percent of the Sahrawi population to Algerian refugee camps, where 173 000 remain. Freedom House classifies the political system governing the Sahrawi under Moroccan rule among the world’s least free. Over the past decade, the Court of Justice of the European Union has repeatedly ruled that Western Sahara possesses a “separate and distinct” status and that its resources cannot be exploited without Sahrawi consent.

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

Sahrawi director Brahim Chagaf, who grew up in Algerian camps, posted that he “cannot freely enter my homeland to tell my own stories,” highlighting the disparity between Nolan’s unrestricted access and local creators’ repression. Campaigner Ghalia Djimi alleged personal disappearance by Moroccan security for more than three years. Human-rights NGO CODESA’s 2024 report documented violent suppression of protests, arbitrary detentions, and the suspicious deaths of three Sahrawi civilians in custody. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (November 2023) declared the prolonged detention of two dozen Sahrawi activists and journalists illegal, and noted torture used against 18 student activists detained in 2016. Frontline Defenders warned of “medical neglect, reprisals and other forms of ill-treatment” against imprisoned Sahrawi defenders, including hunger-striking prisoner Enaâma Asfari.

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

The European Union’s highest court has ruled that exploiting Western Sahara’s resources without Sahrawi consent breaches international law, a principle the EU has struggled to reconcile with trade agreements that include Morocco. The UN Working Group’s 2023 conclusions affirmed the illegality of long-standing detentions linked to the 2010 Gdeim Izik protest camp. Freedom House’s categorization underscores the broader political repression cited by activists.

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “Mr. Nolan filmed there without the consent of the Sahrawi people,” — Javier Bardem, Actor

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “The only consent he received came from the occupying force: Morocco.” — Javier Bardem, Actor

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “As he posted the letter on his Instagram account, he added: “For 50 years, Morocco has occupied Western Sahara, expelling the Sahrawi people from their cities.” — Javier Bardem, Actor (Instagram)

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “I grew up in the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria and today, as a Sahrawi filmmaker from the occupied city of Dakhla, I cannot freely enter my homeland to tell my own stories,” — Brahim Chagaf, Director

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “Mr Nolan: I am a human rights defender. Morocco disappeared me for 3 years and 7 months in a secret prison in occupied El Aaiún.” — Ghalia Djimi, Campaigner

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony

• “When Christopher Nolan steps on the red carpet on his way to the premiere’s screening, he will also be stepping on International Law,” — María Carrión, Executive Director, Western Sahara International Film Festival

Odyssey to Africa’s last colony