“This is amazing!”: Elizabeth Olsen Was Inspired By Oppenheimer To Do Godzilla, Helped Revive the Once Doomed Franchise
J. Robert Oppenheimer’s brilliant mind impacted humanity in such a way that to this day he divides opinions and inspires different individuals in different ways.
Robert Pattinson gifted his Tenet director, Christopher Nolan, a book of Oppenheimer’s speeches from the 1950s. That proved enough to inspire the genius filmmaker to make a whole feature documentary on the lead character of the book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer.
In recent months, millions have queued up to catch Cillian Murphy portraying Oppenheimer on the big screen, and there’s no doubt the life of the father of the atomic bomb would inspire or influence the lives of many in a number of ways through this movie. Interestingly, his words also impacted the future of one of the most high-profile franchises of recent times.
Read more: Matt Damon Revealed Real Reason Oppenheimer Fans Think Cillian Murphy is a ‘Difficult’ Co-Star
How Oppenheimer Impacted Elizabeth Olsen’s Godzilla
Gareth Edwards picked up a once-forgotten monster-themed franchise Godzilla and directed a reboot with the same title in 2014. The refined plot sees Lieutenant Ford and his father, Joe, exploring the existence of giant creatures which leads to a face-off between MUTO and Godzilla.
However, the dominant theme of the movie is about the Brody family and their relationship rather than the monsters’ battle sequences. Elizabeth Olsen plays the role of Ford’s wife, Elle Brody, who leaves her son with a coworker to find Ford, who initially leaves for Japan.
Olsen, who was involved in a lot of independent projects at the time, got a little screen time in Godzilla and had to undergo a major shift for the role of Elle. Accordingly, she wasn’t even sure about the project until she caught a quote from Oppenheimer in the teaser. She reflected on her choice of picking the role:
“I mean the funny thing is – is like with Godzilla, because I got to do Godzilla and to me, I was like – oh God, I’m going to this meeting about Godzilla, how stupid is that? And then, I see this teaser and it’s an (J. Robert) Oppenheimer quote about him creating the most powerful weapon in the world. Meanwhile, you’re looking at this devastated city and then, Godzilla roars and you’re like – what is this? (laughs) And you’re like – this is amazing! And that’s why I wanted to do the movie. “
Fair to say, Oppenheimer’s impact in Hollywood has been as significant as his impact in the field of theoretical physics. Olsen got a lot of praise for her performance and Godzilla proved to be a huge success, earning over half a billion in global box office collection.
Read more: Elizabeth Olsen Wants to be Friends With Godzilla, Calls the Alpha Kaiju a “Little Animal”
Why Elizabeth Olsen Didn’t Feature in Godzilla: King of the Monsters
Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson shared impressive chemistry in Godzilla and played an important role in reviving the franchise, paving the way for the sequel titled Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
Still, the Brody couple didn’t get a part in the sequel despite a happy ending in the first that showed they are well and alive.
Godzilla 2 picks up five years after the first sighting of the MUTOs and focuses on the dysfunctional Russell family, as director Michael Dougherty wanted to “shift it to the eggheads.”
However, that shift didn’t work as planned and the 2019 movie managed only $386.6 million at the box office.
Source: The Interrobang
