--- title: "We’re still obsessed with hero stories 4,000 years after Gilgamesh" date: "2026-08-10" modified: "2026-08-10" authors: - name: "Shannon Corbeil" job_title: "Contributor, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/scorbeil/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/entertainment/were-still-obsessed-with-hero-stories-4000-years-after-gilgamesh/" categories: - "Entertainment" - "Movies and TV" tags: - "Entertainment" - "Movies" --- # We’re still obsessed with hero stories 4,000 years after Gilgamesh ![hero stories spiderman weekend sony:marvel]() *(Marvel/Sony Pictures)* Opening weekend of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” along with the third weekend of “The Odyssey” fueled the biggest collective weekend in box office history at a cool $430 million across all movies in the marketplace—and that’s just domestic, baby. “Spider-Man” alone brought in $932 million worldwide, second in history only to “Avengers: Endgame,” which brought in $1.22 billion globally during opening weekend. In other words, stories about heroes are still massively popular. **Also Read: [Audie Murphy’s Medal of Honor action is still like something out of a movie]()** But… is that a *good* thing? Maybe there is no "good" or "bad" here—let’s re-word that question: What does our fascination with the hero archetype and warrior storytelling say about us as a species? “The Odyssey” is a great place to begin, as it is one of our longest-enduring stories of all time. Homer’s original poem was composed—that is, sung and spoken aloud, rather than written down—nearly 2,700 years ago. ![hero stories odyssey]() *So many battle scenes the actors should all get Purple Hearts. (Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures)* We can, however, go back even further. “The Epic of Gilgamesh” was carved onto clay tablets [nearly 4,000 years ago]() in ancient Mesopotamia. It is the story of a great king and warrior who grew lustful and tyrannical, causing the gods to create a wild man called Enkidu to battle him. By the end of the epic, Gilgamesh fought the gods, survived a great flood with the help of the gods, and learned that all humans are equal in death. Aboriginal Australians have [an oral history that can be traced 7,000 years](), when their people hunted creatures that are now extinct. And in “The Odyssey” and other Greek epics, a clever warrior and king struggles against the gods and their creations as he fights to return home after a ten year war. It makes sense that our ancient stories contained violence. Humans were closer to their food source and often needed to hunt wild animals for food and resources. As our species evolved, we never left our tribalism behind; we need community and belonging to survive, therefore we have a strong propensity toward identifying “others” and eliminating them. It’s strange, then, as our civilizations grew and we began to codify philosophies and ethical agreements, that religion, ethnic and racial diversity, political beliefs, and economic classes have further divided us. Shouldn’t we be more evolved than that? I therefore find myself questioning the merits of hero stories. On the one hand, I love them. Like, I really, really love them. They’re why I got into filmmaking. And, as evidenced by this past weekend box office alone, I am clearly not the only one. The themes of a hero archetype do call to our higher morals; a hero is brave and strong and willing to sacrifice himself to defeat evil and protect the greater good. To quote “Buffy the Vampire Slayer:” “It's terribly simple. The good guys are always stalwart and true. The bad guys are easily distinguished by their pointy horns or black hats, and we always defeat them and save the day. No one ever dies and everybody lives happily ever after." ![hero stories tom holland spiderman sony]() *(Marvel/Sony Pictures)* Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is the fourth in the Tom Holland Spidey saga and he just doesn’t miss. This film explores loneliness and the need for support—even for super heroes. It encourages us to be ourselves. And, of course, for any good Spider-Man story, it infuses the moral maxim that “with great power comes great responsibility.” Holland is an exceptional Peter Parker; even rounding 30 years old (having played the role for 10 years now), he exhibits Peter’s charm, playfulness, guilelessness, and *goodness.* Peter Parker wants to do the right thing. He doesn’t kill his opponents—he webs them into place until the cops can come arrest them and place them into custody for the judicial system to determine their fate. He keeps an open mind about who the true enemy is. His moral compass is true, so why not look up to Spider-Man as a role model? Well, in our day-to-day lives, we’re probably not going to encounter a villain with a robotic scorpion tail that only we, and our radioactive spider super powers, can prevent from destroying a city block. In other words, how can we be like Peter Parker when we can’t physically fight the people who threaten or oppose us? ![spiderman scorpion sony]() *I can't compete with this. (Marvel/Sony Pictures)* This was, perhaps, a challenge for Christopher Nolan in adapting “The Odyssey.” The plot was already there. Odysseus was not just a king and warrior, he was a trickster archetype. Yes, he fought in the Trojan War, but he was most successful when he was cunning or when he relied on deception and disguise. Nolan chose to portray Odysseus as remorseful about one of his most successful and famous deceptions: the Trojan Horse, the trick that opened the gates of Troy and allowed the Greeks to conquer the city, innocent civilians and soldiers alike. But Odysseus doesn’t actually change throughout the course of his epic; he returns to Ithaca and tricks people to get into his throne room and test loyalties. But **(spoiler alert)** then he pretty much single-handedly murders the dozens of suitors who plagued his halls during his two decades away. So while Nolan’s filmmaking was masterful—the costumes, the ship, the locations, the practical effects, the performances… my god what an amazing experience it must have been to be part of it. The story itself is, well, dated to 3,000 years ago, when the acceptable consequence of being inhospitable or greedy was to be murdered. ![hero stories odyssey anne hathaway]() *Perfectly capable of ruling Ithaca, in my opinion, but Ancient Greeks weren’t ready to have that conversation. (Universal Pictures)* But after watching fight scene after fight scene after fight scene, especially having seen both films opening weekend nearly back-to-back, I came back to the same question: *How do we defeat our enemies when we are not on a battlefield?* I would argue that it is not the responsibility of films like “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” or “The Odyssey” to answer that question. Superhero films and epics are there to entertain us with symbolic virtues. My question, then, is how are we as a culture evolving our own stories and myths? “Eternals” (also a Marvel Cinematic Universe film) attempted to answer that question by contrasting the powers and leadership capabilities of Ikaris and Sersi. Ikaris was the most powerful Eternal, a Superman-like being with unparalleled strength who could fly and shoot lasers out of his eyes. He felt that made him most worthy of leadership and decision-making. But Ajak chose Sersi to succeed her, Sersi, who valued compassion and had the power to transfigure things like weapons into flowers or planet-destroying Celestials into rock. It was a film that proposed the notion that might doesn’t always make right. And it’s [considered a flop](). ![hero stories eternals marvel]() *By fools! *Fools,* I tell you! (Marvel)* I personally loved the nuance and philosophy of “Eternals.” I also loved the heart and charm of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” I think there’s room for both. I’d also like to see more “Erin Brockovich”-type films; that’s a very clear demonstration of how *we* can defeat our enemies, like evil corporations giving people cancer. We take the time to uncover what they’re doing and use our judicial system to punish them. That’s just a little less sexy than getting swept away (literally) by a superhero with a heart of gold. But it’s important to invest in the kinds of stories we want to influence our society. Disney’s "act of true love" was a romantic kiss—even if one party is unconscious and can’t consent to it—until “Frozen” gave us sisters protecting one another. Maybe “The Eternals” was too new and too unlike the other Marvel films, but critics sure lambasted Academy Award-winning director Chloé Zhao for taking a swing at it. Let’s not forget that traditional superhero films were hit and miss until “Iron Man” changed the game, so I’d like to see a little more support for the films that are trying new things. **Don’t Miss the Best of We Are The Mighty** **• [What happened after the TSA confiscated a World War II hero’s Medal of Honor]()** **• [9/11 hero Welles Crowther to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom]()** **• [‘Jimmy’ celebrates World War II hero Jimmy Stewart for America’s 250th with a new trailer]()** ## Author Shannon Corbeil has worked for We Are The Mighty as a digital video producer, writer, and host, as well as a staff writer covering military history, trivia, and valor. Shannon is a fierce veteran advocate, covering the achievements of members of the military community and volunteering in multiple veteran non-profit organizations, including Pin-Ups for Vets and Warriors for Peace Theatre. Her undergraduate degree is in Humanities and Philosophy and her Masters is in Strategic Intelligence. A screenwriter and actor recently seen on SEAL TEAM and THE ROOKIE, Shannon writes about exciting projects in the entertainment industry. She is an alum of the Writers Guild Foundation Veterans Writing Project, a Finalist in the Disney TV Writing Fellowship, an inaugural fellow for the STARZ/VME #TakeTheLead Program, and has performed at the Geffen Playhouse and Kennedy Center as a writer, dancer, singer, and actor. As a U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer, Shannon supported the 25th Fighter Squadron at Osan Air Base, South Korea, and conducted Cyber Threat Analysis at the National Security Agency. Her work has been seen in Business Insider, Task & Purpose, Military.com, and various other publications. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Bluesky]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()