Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer Faces Severe Blow as Actors Walk Out of London Premiere Ahead of Global Release
One of the highly anticipated movies of 2023, Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is all set for its theatrical release in July. With its star-studded cast and spellbinding cinematography the biographical epic has already created a buzz in the entertainment world, long before its release. With a legacy of being the brain behind one of the most spectacular projects in Hollywood, Christopher Nolan is expected to come up with one of the best cinematic experiences for his fans around the world.
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Oppenheimer is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer authored by Martin Sherwin and Kai Bird. With the Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy in the lead, the Christopher Nolan movie marks a stepping stone in the acting career of the Irish actor. However, recently the London premiere of the movie was obstructed due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike in Hollywood.
Why Did Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer Stars Walk Out Of The London Premiere?
With the SAG-AFTRA unanimously calling a strike, and according to the union’s National Board multiple actors, voice-over artists, TV hosts, and other media professionals would end up joining the Writer’s Guild of America and write off their picket lines to show solidarity with the organization.
During the London premiere of Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan announced that the entire cast of his upcoming movie has already left to write their own picket lines to show solidarity with the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.
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While taking center stage, without the cast of his upcoming movie Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan announced-
“I have to acknowledge the work of our incredible cast, led by Cillian Murphy. The list is enormous — Robert Downey Jr, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Kenneth Branagh, Rami Malek and so many more. … You’ve seen them here earlier on the red carpet. Unfortunately, they are off to write their picket signs for what we believe to be an imminent strike by SAG, joining one of my guilds, the Writers Guild, in the struggle for fair wages for working members of their union.”
Christopher Nolan says the cast of #Oppenheimer left the premiere to ‘go and write their pickets’ and join the strike pic.twitter.com/rc2SaSxcfk
— Deadline (@DEADLINE) July 13, 2023
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The Oppenheimer cast was present on the red carpet of the London premiere. They posed for the pictures, were welcomed by the audience, and spoke to the interviewers too. After some time Christopher Nolan took to the center stage and confirmed that the entire cast walked out of the premiere only to prepare for the ongoing strike.
Oppenheimer Stars On Supporting The SAG-AFTRA Strike
The entertainment industry in the US is going through one of the worst days. During the red carpet of Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi epic drama, Matt Damon spoke to the media outlet Variety, about the effect of the SAG-AFTRA strike on the promotions of his upcoming movie. He said-
“We talked about it. Look, if it’s called now, everyone’s going to walk obviously in solidarity … Once the strike is officially called, [we’re walking]. That’s why we moved this [red carpet] up because we know the second it’s called, we’re going home.”
Actor Emily Blunt also spoke about the uncertainty looming over Oppenheimer during an interview with The Deadline, if the SAG-AFTRA comes into existence. The actor said-
“I think right now we are just sorting of… I hope everyone makes a fair deal and we are here to celebrate this movie. And if they call it, we’ll be leaving together as cast in unity with everyone. We are gonna have to. We are gonna have to. We will see what happens. Right now it’s the joy to be together.”
The strike would have a direct impact on Oppenheimer and the upcoming movies too. The SAG-AFTRA strike can even lead to the shutting down of many production houses and even the delay of already finished projects in Hollywood.
Oppenheimer is scheduled for release on July 21, 2023.
Source: Deadline/Twitter
