With over 11 Academy Awards from 36 nominations, British filmmaker Christopher Nolan is widely considered one of Hollywood’s very best directors.

With a body of work that includes the mind-bending Inception, space drama Interstellar, Tenet and Christian Bale’s Batman trilogy, Nolan has a reputation for thrillingly complex and high-octane films with a touch of darkness.

We can expect his latest film, Oppenheimer, a gritty thriller about the scientist who invented the atomic bomb, to be no different.

When The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Cillian Murphy and Emily Blunt had been cast as leads, we knew this film was going to be a special one. Since then, the starry cast has reached new heights with the announcements that Florence Pugh, Rami Malek, Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr will all feature in the blockbuster.

Now, we finally have a glimpse at what we can expect from Nolan’s latest courtesy of a new trailer. With that, here’s everything you need to know about Oppenheimer.

What’s the plot of Oppenheimer?

As per Deadline, the upcoming biopic will track the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer (played by Murphy), the scientist who ran the Manhattan Project that led to the invention of the atomic bomb. Blunt will take on a role as his wife, Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer Vissering.

Universal describes the project as an “epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.” 

Who stars in Oppenheimer?

As the release date edges closer, the cast has shaped up to be a star-studded one.

Murphy and Blunt were the first join the impressive ensemble, which later added Hollywood legends Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr to the cast, alongside Florence Pugh, Rami Malek and Benny Sadie. Talk about star power.

Pugh will play Jean Tatlock, a member of the Communist Party of the United States who has an off-and-on affair with Oppenheimer and was the cause of major security concerns for government officials.

Benny Safdie will take the role of Edward Teller, the Hungarian physicist who is known as the father of the hydrogen bomb and a member of the Manhattan Project, the US research initiative that developed the first atomic bomb.

Damon was previously confirmed as Lt. Gen. Leslie Groves, the director of the Manhattan Project. Downey is playing Lewis Strauss, the infamous chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission who initiated hearings that questioned Oppenheimer’s loyalty to the United States and famously had the scientist’s security clearance revoked.

The newest additions include You’s Dylan Arnold and Manifest actor Olli Haaskivi. We know that Arnold will play Oppenheimer’s younger brother, Frank Oppenheimer, but Haaskivi’s character details have not yet been revealed.

Scottish actor Tom Conti is set to play scientist Albert Einstein, with the first look at his performance teased in the latest trailer.

Nolan will write and direct the film, while his creative partner and wife, Emma Thomas, will produce with Charles Roven of Atlas Entertainment.

What is the true story behind Oppenheimer?

Nolan’s Oppenheimer is based on American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, a 2005 book by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin that won the Pulitzer Prize.

J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967) was an American theoretical physicist. During the Manhattan Project – the World War II project that produced the first ever nuclear weapons – Oppenheimer was director of the Los Alamos Laboratory and responsible for the research and design of an atomic bomb.

A child genius and Harvard graduate, Oppenheimer is widely considered the “father of the atomic bomb”. 

The first ever atomic bomb was detonated in New Mexico on 16 July 1945. Later, in August 1945 two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which ultimately pushed the Japanese to surrender to US forces.

Oppenheimer was largely credited with the success of the Manhattan Project, however he spoke about feeling that “he had blood on his hands” for his role in its development.

In 1946, Oppenheimer told a university audience that when the Manhattan Project team spoke of what they had done, “we thought of the legend of Prometheus, of that deep sense of guilt in man’s new powers that reflects his recognition of evil, and his long knowledge of it.” He felt he held responsibility for the ensuing arms race and threat to civilization brought about by the bomb. 

Later in his life, along with Albert Einstein, he established the World Academy of Art and Science in 1960. He continued lecturing physics around the world, before passing away from throat cancer in 1967.

Is there a trailer for Oppenheimer?

The latest trailer for Nolan’s film ramps up the tension, with Murphy’s character explaining that “we’re in a race against the Nazis” to develop nuclear weapons. “And I know what it means if the Nazis have a bomb,” he adds ominously.

We then see Oppenheimer and Groves attempting to assemble a team of scientists at Los Alamos in New Mexico, where a town is built to allow the researchers to bring their families. “Why would we go to the middle of nowhere for who knows how long?” one doubter asks them.

“Our work here will ensure a peace mankind has never seen,” Oppenheimer asserts later, before Safdie’s character chimes in with: “Until somebody builds a bigger bomb”.

As the trailer ends, a countdown begins as the screen is engulfed in flames. 

When will Oppenheimer be available to watch?

Oppenheimer will be released in cinemas on 21 July 2023 – and yes, that’s the same day that Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie makes its debut. Talk about a double bill… 

Images: Universal Pictures; Getty