Christopher Nolan claims he has a “responsibility” to continue making “large scale” movies
There aren’t many filmmakers in the industry who operate with complete freedom, with Christopher Nolan having been a part of that exclusive club for almost two decades.
The director has become synonymous with blockbuster crowd-pleasers that are every bit as intelligent as they are expansive, and he’s now reached a point where he doesn’t see the need to return to a smaller canvas. Oppenheimer may have been a historical drama, but it still came in at a cost of $100million.
Of course, the box office success and critical acclaim that greeted his recent films have made it a lot easier for Nolan to keep working on such a grand scale, and he explained why that’s the way he plans to carry on.
“I’m drawn to working at a large scale because I know how fragile the opportunity to marshal those resources is”, he told Time. “I know that there are so many filmmakers out there in the world who would give their eye teeth to have the resources I put together, and I feel I have the responsibility to use them in the most productive and interesting way”.
In essence, it’s Nolan’s typically eloquent way of saying he will keep mounting expensive productions because he can, and nobody out there would consider telling him otherwise. Nevertheless, the director is also fully aware that he’s one of a very small few in such a position.
In an era where franchises are Hollywood’s go-to method of generating maximum revenue, the gulf between the budgets awarded to independent, unproven, and rising filmmakers and the costs lavished on sequels and adaptations is growing ever wider. However, Nolan sits as a rare creative talent who can make whatever film they want for as much as they need it to cost.
Last week, it was revealed that Nolan has been nominated for ‘Best Director’ at the 96th Academy Awards on March 10th. He will face off against Martin Scorsese, Yorgos Lanthimos, Jonathan Glazer and Justine Triet.
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