When Christopher Nolan channelled ‘Star Wars’ to get the best out of his cast
It’s pretty clear at this point that Christopher Nolan knows what he’s doing when it comes to directing. His movies have earned over $6.5million worldwide and are among some of the most critically-acclaimed of the modern age. He’s been decorated countless times, including with a ‘Best Director’ Oscar and a Knighthood. They don’t just give those out to anyone, you know.
The film that won him that aforementioned statuette was 2023’s Oppenheimer. The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, his spearheading of the Manhattan Project, and the aftermath of the nuclear attacks on Japan, was beloved by critics and fans alike. It made almost $1billion at the box office, thanks in no small part to the ‘Barbenheimer‘ phenomenon, and solidified Cillian Murphy as an acting superstar. The Irishman was also given an Oscar for his portrayal of the troubled physicist, cementing him as one of the standout performances of his generation.
Murphy was just a piece of the Oppenheimer puzzle, however. He was backed up by major supporting performances from Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, and Florence Pugh. Then there’s the absolutely bonkers cast of minor characters. Jack Quaid, Matthew Modine, Casey Affleck, Rami Malek, Benny Safdie, Kenneth Branagh, Gary Oldman, the list of famous faces with walk-on parts goes on and on and on. Once you’d clocked that Josh Peck from Drake & Josh was the one who was going to press the button during the first atomic bomb test, it was very hard to take that monumental moment seriously.
Another name on this extraordinary call sheet was Dylan Arnold. Known for his roles in the Netflix series You and the rebooted ‘Halloween’ franchise, Arnold plays Frank, the troubled younger brother of the title character. Frank’s involvement with the Communist Party plays a huge part in the film’s third act, as his brother’s wartime heroics are brought under scrutiny. This was a big test for Arnold, but thankfully, his director had some words of encouragement for him.
“There was a very short, easy shot that we had to do,” he told The Hollywood Reporter, recounting a day on the Oppenheimer set. “I asked him [Nolan] what he wanted me to do. And he just looked at me and said, ‘May the Force be with you.’ So he was willing to let me explore and let me bring myself to it. He just has this extraordinary trust and collaborative spirit that brings out the best in people.”
This isn’t the only story from the making of Oppenheimer that paints Nolan in a quirky light. Emily Blunt spoke about how she knew her director was happy when his ‘hair starts to dance’, a weird tell that betrays the maestro’s sense of satisfaction. Given that he’s made some of the most critically-revered films of the past 20 years, you wouldn’t expect Nolan to be a little ‘Star Wars’ nerd with dancing hair. That being said, he is a director. They’re all pretty odd.
With his sci-fi quips and his eccentric barnet, Nolan comes across as a relatable, down-to-Earth guy who gets the best out of his cast by being a normal human being. In an industry full of inflated egos and out-of-touch millionaires, it’s nice to know that people like him still exist.
