2023-08-07 03:00:01
«Monumental Undertaking»
Cillian Murphy was starving and isolating for Oppenheimer
Irish actor Cillian Murphy pushed his limits for his role as father of the atomic bomb Robert Oppenheimer. It was said on set that he carried an “incredible burden” on his shoulders.
Published7. Aug 2023, 05:00
Cillian Murphy worked hard for “Oppenheimer” and isolated himself from colleagues.
AFP
In order to be as slim and gaunt as the real Oppenheimer, Murphy kept his diet to a minimum.
REUTERS
“He was allowed to eat regarding one almond a day. He was so emaciated,” said fellow actress Emily Blunt, who plays Oppenheimer’s wife Kitty.
REUTERS
Murphy’s personal process of stepping into the role of the historical character might have taken longer, but Christopher Nolan ended up giving him just six months to do it.
IMAGO/Picturelux
Cillian Murphy had really “emaciated” for the leading role in “Oppenheimer”, as fellow actress Emily Blunt says.
He was so engrossed that he isolated himself completely.
In an interview, Murphy admitted that his behavior during the preparation was rather “unhealthy”.
So far, Cillian Murphy (47) has appeared in supporting roles in Christopher Nolan’s films such as “The Dark Knight”, “Inception” and “Dunkirk”. With “Oppenheimer”, the Irish actor took on the leading role of the physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. For the complex role of the father of the atomic bomb Murphy took a lot on himself. In addition to a strict diet, the “Peaky Blinders” star isolates himself completely. “I didn’t go out much and didn’t socialize a lot, mostly because of the amount of work I had to do. I was so immersed in the role,” Murphy told New Musical Express magazine.
During his isolation, the actor stuck to dietary restrictions to mimic Oppenheimer’s scrawny physique. He wanted step by step transform into the man who “lived on martinis and cigarettes”. His co-actress Emily Blunt (40), who slipped into the role of Oppenheimer’s wife Kitty, did not go unnoticed. “He had such a monumental undertaking. He was allowed to eat regarding one almond every day. He was so emaciated,” Blunt told Extra. Murphy refrained from having dinner with the cast.
Cillian Murphy only had six months to prepare
Murphy himself, however, was reluctant to give details regarding his weight loss. “I don’t want the headlines to be like, ‘Cillian lost weight for role X.'” he told The Guardian. The radical renunciation of food was good for the role. “That was the character, he never ate,” says Murphy. However, he admitted that he always competed a little with himself in the whole thing, which “is not healthy” and he advises once morest it.
His personal process of stepping into the role of the historical character might have taken longer, but Christopher Nolan ended up giving him only six months to do it. One day he called him “out of the blue”, as Murphy told “Collider”, and asked him if he would like to play Oppenheimer. It was a shock, albeit a pleasant one. “And then you think: Okay, now I have a lot of work ahead of me.”
Controversy surrounding the Bhagavad Gita
Murphy read a lot beforehand – not only regarding Oppenheimer, but also the Bhagavad Gita, one of the most important scriptures in Hinduism, which comprises 700 verses. The book is said to have been on the shelves of the real Oppenheimer at the time and the quote “Now I have become death, the destroyer of the worlds” was said to have been used by him.
The fact that this passage is recited during a sex scene in the film has recently caused outrage among representatives of the Hindu nationalist ruling party BJP. This was seen as a “disturbing attack on Hinduism”. Indian Information Minister Anurag Thakur had even asked Nolan to delete the scene in question.
The trailer for Christopher Nolan’s film.
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