Directing darling Christopher Nolan recently proved once again with Oppenheimer that he values great film entertainment that stands on its own. But did you know that the master director is also grateful to Marvel?
Oppenheimer is the frontrunner for 13 Oscars this year and director Christopher Nolan may have produced the Dark Knight trilogy, but is otherwise better known as a filmmaker for favoring original material such as Inception and Interstellar. So it’s all the more surprising that the master director has now found positive words for the MCU’s blockbuster competition
Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan knows what Marvel films have done for cinema
In an interview with the New York Times, Christopher Nolan and his star Robert Downey Jr., who was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, spoke about their collaboration on Oppenheimer. They also discussed other topics, such as the Marvel success story in the cinema:
(Oppenheimer: Christopher Nolan with Robert Downey Jr.)
I think Jon Favreau casting Robert [Downey Jr.] as Tony Stark was one of the most significant and momentous decisions in Hollywood history. It changed our [film] industry forever. Now that we’re coming out of the coronavirus pandemic, we’re like, ‘Thank God for Marvel movies. That was one thing that, looking back, everyone thinks was obvious. But [Favreau] took a huge risk casting [Downey Jr.] in the role.
Before his casting in the very first MCU film Iron Man (2008), Robert Downey Jr. was considered an enfant terrible in Hollywood that many filmmakers preferred not to cast.
Christopher Nolan’s praise of Marvel therefore relates on the one hand to the influence his Oppenheimer star has exerted 15 years later despite these adversities. On the other hand, he also recognizes that the big Marvel blockbusters have helped cinemas through the coronavirus crisis. Thanks to their broad appeal to a large audience, they helped to lure people back to the big screen.
Christopher Nolan recently revealed his weakness for a Fast & Furious film. The director can obviously still surprise us with more than just his films.
