Robert Downey Jr. has called Oppenheimer “the best film I’ve ever been in” ahead of its release next week.
- READ MORE: Why are actors striking in Hollywood?
The upcoming biopic stars Cillian Murphy as scientist and “father of the atomic bomb” J. Robert Oppenheimer, and is set to be released on July 21, 2023.
Ahead of its release, Downey Jr. has praised the film as the best he’s ever been involved in, telling IndieWire at this week’s UK premiere: “Just going to flat out say it: This is the best film I’ve ever been in, and I cannot wait for you all to experience it.”
Director Christopher Nolan added of Downey Jr. to The Los Angeles Times: “He’s one of our great actors, and though a generation of kids know what a great movie star he is, they’ve not seen his subtlety and brilliance.
“I wanted to get him to do something completely different, to lose himself in another human being. When was the last time we’ve seen that? ‘Chaplin’? Directors are very aware of how talented Downey is, but because of his incredible energy that can punch through the screen, finding the right thing for him is difficult.”
Downey Jr. was among the Oppenheimer cast members to leave the London premiere of the film this week (July 13) as a Hollywood actors’ strike was called.
According to Nolan, the actors left the premiere as the strike began (via BBC), after the event was brought forward by an hour so the cast could walk the red carpet.
The national board of SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) – Hollywood’s largest union, which represents 160,000 actors and performers – voted unanimously today to strike, according to The Los Angeles Times.
The Hollywood shutdown is first time in 63 years that actors and writers have gone on strike simultaneously.
The separate WGA (Writers Guild Of America) strike, which began on May 2, occurred following unsuccessful negotiations with AMPTP, who represent major Hollywood studios like Netflix, Disney, Apple, Amazon, Paramount, Warner Bros. and others.