AceShowbiz - Jimmy Kimmel took aim at Elon Musk following the Tesla CEO’s public backlash over the casting of Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy in director Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of The Odyssey.

During his monologue on Tuesday’s episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the comedian addressed Musk’s anger over the decision to cast a Black actress in the role, telling Musk to “stay in [his] lane.”

Kimmel explained, “Elon Musk is now attacking Christopher Nolan, the film director, for the way he cast the movie The Odyssey. He’s upset because Christopher Nolan hired Lupita Nyong’o to play a character he believes should be played by a white woman.”

The late-night host then read out Musk’s post on X, where Musk accused Nolan of “desecrating the Odyssey so that he would be eligible for an Academy Award.” Musk also questioned: “Who specifically is the a-hole who added DEI lies to Academy Awards eligibility instead of it just being about making the best movie?”

Responding to Musk’s comments, Kimmel quipped, “That’s a good question. While we’re at it, who specifically is the a-hole who thought this was a cool design for a truck? I mean, stay in your lane.”

Kimmel noted that Musk was not alone in his outrage, highlighting that the backlash had become “a thing now.” He pointed to Newsmax host Rob Finnerty, who devoted an entire segment to denouncing the casting choice, insisting “Helen of Troy was not Black.”

Addressing Finnerty’s claims, Kimmel fired back, “Well, here’s something that might surprise you, Rob. Helen of Troy was also not real.” He emphasized that The Odyssey is a mythical poem and that Helen of Troy is a fictional character, “like Santa Claus or election fraud.” According to Kimmel, “It doesn’t matter what color a myth is.”

He elaborated, “If you really want to get into it, Helen of Troy was half bird. Helen was the daughter of Zeus — and these, Rob, are not photographs, these are drawings — who disguised himself as a swan to mate with a human woman who then laid an egg and out hatched Helen of Troy.”

“This is not history. This is made up. She was pretend. So it makes no difference to anyone but crazy angry people what color she was,” Kimmel concluded.

Before moving on, Kimmel joked that the real outrage should be directed at the actor cast to play Odysseus, referencing his long-running comedic feud with Matt Damon.

The full segment is available to watch on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, which airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. ET on ABC.