Fans of Christopher Nolan’s work will be ecstatic to find out that new images from the upcoming film Oppenheimer have dropped, revealing new cast characters and behind-the-scenes photos.
Oppenheimer, Nolan’s 12th film, is a biopic about American theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. Specifically, the film will explore his role in the Manhattan Project, which led to the development of the atomic bomb. The acclaimed director is known for his preference towards practical effects and for creating films majorly centered on metaphysical themes, exploring the concepts of time, memory, and personal identity.
Although the British-American filmmaker has never shied away from hard-to-tackle projects and ideas, he disclosed on Total Film’s upcoming 2023 preview issue that Oppenheimer was the most challenging project he had undertaken in his career in terms of scale.
I think recreating the Trinity test [the first nuclear weapon detonation, in New Mexico] without the use of computer graphics, was a huge challenge to take on. Andrew Jackson – my visual effects supervisor, I got him on board early on – was looking at how we could do a lot of the visual elements of the film practically, from representing quantum dynamics and quantum physics to the Trinity test itself, to recreating, with my team, Los Alamos up on a mesa in New Mexico in extraordinary weather, a lot of which was needed for the film, in terms of the very harsh conditions out there – there were huge practical challenges.
It’s a story of immense scope and scale, and one of the most challenging projects I’ve ever taken on in terms of the scale of it, and in terms of encountering the breadth of Oppenheimer’s story. There were big, logistical challenges, big practical challenges. But I had an extraordinary crew, and they really stepped up. It will be a while before we’re finished. But certainly as I watch the results come in, and as I’m putting the film together, I’m thrilled with what my team has been able to achieve.
J. Robert Oppenheimer was the subject of much disgrace and political persecution after he opposed the development of the hydrogen bomb during a 1949–1950 governmental debate on the question, following his experience in the Manhattan Project. As such, Nolan’s aim was to tell the story of the man credited as the ‘father of the atomic bomb’ through his eyes.
We’re trying to tell the story of somebody’s life, and their journey through personal history and larger-scale history, and so the subjectivity of the story is everything to me. We want to view these events through Oppenheimer’s eyes. And that was the challenge for Cillian that I set him, to take us on this journey; that was the challenge for Hoyte van Hoytema, my designer, my whole team: how do we view this extraordinary story through the eyes of the person who was at the heart of it? All of our decisions on how to make this film were based on that real premise.
The film is scheduled to be released in the US on July 21, 2023. The new images give a sneak peek at the star-studded cast, which includes:
- Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer
- Emily Blunt as Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer
- Gary Oldman as Harry S. Truman
- Matt Damon as Leslie Groves
- Robert Downey Jr. as Lewis Strauss
- Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock
- Rami Malek
- Casey Affleck
- Kenneth Branagh
Oppenheimer will be Nolan’s first film not to be fully distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures since his neo-noir mystery film, Memento, due to disagreements arising from the studio’s simultaneous theatrical and HBO Max streaming release strategy.
Speaking of Nolan, Christian Bale mentioned that he’s open to reprising his role as Batman as long as Nolan is involved. Also, another fallout from Warner Bros. Pictures’ older release strategy, Legendary Entertainment, has inked a new deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment.
