Robert Pattinson as Antinous in Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’
Universal Pictures
A clip of Robert Pattinson yelling “Somebody get these beggars out of here!” has taken social media by storm, sparking a variety of memes.
What Is The Robert Pattinson ‘Beggars’ Meme?
The clip, plucked out of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, spread like wildfire through the digital landscape.
Previously, clunky lines of dialogue from Nolan’s Odyssey attracted online backlash, as trailers revealed the Ancient Greek adaptation to be littered with American accents and modern phrases.
As the film plays in theatres, Pattinson’s distinctive delivery has emerged as the standout line.
This might seem odd—after all, it’s not like The Odyssey is short on spectacle. Those who haven’t seen the film might even assume Pattinson’s line to be the most impactful moment.
Nolan’s action-heavy blockbuster boasts plenty of memorable, jaw-dropping scenes, and yet, Pattinson’s outburst has proved oddly compelling.
Fans have posted the clip accompanied by a variety of funny, relatable captions—there are a surprisingly wide range of scenarios in which the word “beggars” can be deployed.
Cigarette stealers and phone charger thieves have been labelled as beggars, as have Microsoft’s most annoying apps.
The meme’s spread coincided with the release of the first trailer for Avengers: Doomsday, and the callback-heavy, nostalgic approach resulted in Marvel Studios also being denounced as “beggars.”
Why Is Robert Pattinson Yelling About Beggars?
The context of the clip sees Pattinson’s character, Antinous, disturbed by the presence of a downtrodden stranger seeking food and shelter.
The “beggar” is actually King Odysseus (Matt Damon) in disguise, who has returned to find his palace overrun with suitors, aggressively pursuing his wife, Penelope (Anne Hathaway) and plotting to murder their son Telemachus (Tom Holland).
At this point in the film, Antinous is growing increasingly tense—his murder plot against Telemachus has failed, and lowly beggars in the palace are not only tolerated, but protected under “Zeus’s Law.”
Antinous, bound to the sacred laws of hospitality, clearly wants to murder the beggar outright, and is losing patience by the minute.
The viral clip was filmed covertly from inside a movie theatre, and contains a grainy, flickering charm—attempts to replace the original clip with an enhanced version was firmly rejected by meme purists.
Why Did Robert Pattinson’s ‘Odyssey’ Clip Go Viral?
Nolan’s adaptation of the Ancient Greek epic has sparked debate over certain creative choices, criticized by scholars and culture warriors, but Pattinson’s performance has largely been met with praise.
Readers of Homer’s The Odyssey have pointed out that Odysseus and other characters are more subdued in Nolan’s film compared to their original characterizations, but Pattinson imbues Antinous with a big personality, despite lack of screentime.
Pattinson is an actor who tends to make interesting choices, regardless of the role, and he delivers the “beggars” line with a blend of bravado and shame.
Amusingly, Antinous appears to immediately regret his outburst.
He’s an insecure, cowardly character who knows that he’s not really worthy to take Odysseus’s place on the throne—his lack of empathy and composure proves it.
Pattinson nailed Antinous’s self-loathing characterization, sparking a viral Odyssey meme with a single line.