Oppenheimer marked the sixth time Cillian Murphy starred in a film directed by Christopher Nolan following The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception and Dunkirk.
Out of the 13 films Nolan has directed, Murphy has been in close to half of them and there’s one particular title that the Irish actor would’ve liked to be a part of.
“I adore Interstellar just because I find it so emotional,” Murphy told The Independent in an interview before the SAG-AFTRA strike. “I remember seeing it in the cinema when I had little kids. It just had a big impact on me. It broke my heart.”
Murphy also noted that he enjoys watching Nolan’s work, particularly when he is not part of the ensemble cast.
“I love watching his films when I’m not in them because you don’t have to freak out about the size of your ears, or whatever,” he added.
Interstellar is a 2014 science fiction film, directed, co-written and produced by Nolan. The film starred Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Bill Irwin, Ellen Burstyn and Michael Caine about a group of astronauts who space travel in search of a new home for humankind.
Murphy also explained what other Nolan film he would pair alongside Oppenheimer for a double bill saying, “You could go Interstellar, which is very… explores similar scientific, physic themes. Or you could watch Dunkirk, which is also set in World War II. Dunkirk is shorter, so that might be a good match ‘cause it’s like an hour-and-a-half, and then you can go into [Oppenheimer].”
Murphy has been getting a lot of praise for his portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer, known as the “father of the atomic bomb.” His co-star Robert Downey Jr. said he had “never witness a greater sacrifice by a lead actor” in his career.
“He knew it was going to be a behemoth ask when Chris called him. But I think he also had the humility that is required to survive playing a role like this,” Downey Jr. told People in July. “We’d be like, ‘Hey, we got a three-day weekend. Maybe we’ll go antiquing in Santa Fe. What are you going to do?’ ‘Oh, I have to learn 30,000 words of Dutch. Have a nice time.’ But that’s the nature of the ask.”