Oppenheimer lead actor Cillian Murphy offers an interesting response when asked whether his central protagonist in the biographical thriller was a good guy or a villain.
Speaking with Gold Derby, Murphy gave a “you be the judge” type of answer when delving into whether J. Robert Oppenheimer is a hero in the titular film. Murphy admitted his character was a complex one, but he tries to be open-minded with his characters, not judging them as good or bad whenever he takes a role. “I don’t ever make those types of decisions playing any character. I never put them into any category, good, bad, or different, I just try to understand them. I just try to figure them out,” he said. “He was so multi-faceted, so complex, so contradictory, it was a joy to play him. It was quite terrifying at the beginning. And he is such an iconic real-life figure. I’d never played somebody who was so well known.”
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Murphy’s portrayal of the eponymous theoretical physicist in Oppenheimer has been widely lauded to the point that many believe he should be among the Best Actor contenders at the 96th Academy Awards. After accepting the lead role “out of the blue,” Murphy immersed himself into the role of Oppenheimer, who played a pivotal role in the creation of the Manhattan Project, after reading what he called one of the best screenplays he’s ever read. Playing a nuanced yet flawed character, Murphy doesn’t believe it’s right to categorize Oppenheimer but to understand the various traits of an admittedly “divisive” man.
“What I learned at the end is that I think he was intensely human, which is a great thing to play, because he was so flawed,” he said. “It was so huge that I just had to go at it bit by bit, just go at it slowly and carefully and with a lot of consideration and sensitivity and empathy. Which is what I always do, but even more so on this one because he is, as you say, quite divisive.”
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While Oppenheimer had many good intentions, he also had his issues. Murphy’s central character in Oppenheimer struggled emotionally for much of the film with the deadly fallout from Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings as thousands of innocent lives were taken despite the atomic weapon’s creation playing a key role in ending World War II. Additionally, Oppenheimer chronicles the eponymous physicist’s relationship with his mistress Jean Tatlock (Florence Pugh), who he was deeply involved with while married to Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer (Emily Blunt).
Was Cillian Murphy Destined to Play Oppenheimer?
For Murphy, Oppenheimer was yet another creative masterclass between himself and Nolan, who he previously worked alongside with in The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception and Dunkirk. Murphy called the film Nolan’s magnum opus, with the film being one of his highest-rated ever. Before playing Oppenheimer on the big screen, Murphy nearly played him in a short-lived WGN series.
Oppenheimer is one of 2023’s biggest success stories in Hollywood, taking home over $953 million to become the third-highest-earning film of the year and the highest-grossing biopic ever made. Now on digital and home video, the film is still showing in select theaters and is expected to debut in Japan in 2024 despite its mixed perception there.
Oppenheimer is now available on digital, Blu-ray, DVD and 4K.
Source: Gold Derby via YouTube
Oppenheimer
- Release Date
- July 21, 2023
- Cast
- Cillian Murphy , Emily Blunt , Matt Damon , Robert Downey Jr.
- Runtime
- 180 Minutes
- Main Genre
- Biography
- Genres
- Drama , War , History , Biography
