CLAIM: A viral Facebook post falsely claims that acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan is set to direct a biopic about the late basketball player Rene Clert “Bobet” Baterbonia, allegedly calling him “the real life Odyssey.”
VERDICT: FALSE.
FACT: There is no official announcement from Nolan, his production company, or any major film studio confirming that such a film exists.
A circulating Facebook post with around 9,000 reactions states, “Just in: Christopher Nolan is set to direct Rene Baterbonia biopic,” and attributes to the director the quote, “He is the real life Odysssey.”
The image lacks any identifying marks of a credible news graphic, including a media logo, publication name, source, or date, despite presenting the claim as a breaking news announcement.
The post also contains an obvious typo, spelling “Odyssey” as “Odysssey,” a mistake that would be highly unlikely to appear in an official statement from Nolan or a legitimate studio announcement.
Instead of directing a basketball biopic, Nolan’s most recent film is The Odyssey, an adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic. The viral post appears to have taken the title of Nolan’s latest project and falsely connected it to Baterbonia to make the claim appear believable.
