Christopher Nolan Reveals How He Would’ve Directed The Avengers

Christopher Nolan has cemented himself as one of the biggest directorial box office attractions. Like Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorsese, Nolan’s projects sell because they are inherently his stories. That said, Nolan did have his dance with intellectual property at the beginning of his career, as the filmmaker helmed The Dark Knight trilogy. Even a decade removed from the Christian Bale-led series’ finale, The Dark Knight movies are still revered by audiences today as being the best Batman films ever made, with many specifically calling The Dark Knight (2008) one of the greatest motion-pictures of all time.

While Nolan recently closed the door on returning to the world of comic book movies, he did take a walk down what if lane, specifically looking towards the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When asked what his iteration of The Avengers would’ve looked like, Nolan joked that the ensemble piece would feature even more of Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark than in the original.

“That is the multiverse conundrum,” Nolan told Wired regarding his take on Avengers. “Having worked with you (Robert) in Oppenheimer, there’d probably be a lot too much Tony Stark. You’d be running all over the movie a little bit.”

Nolan added that he would bring his signature style of practical effects into the mix.

“And not using CG,” Nolan continued. “Would you be prepared to get on one of those jetpacks [for Iron Man scenes]? The ones they make for real?”

Downey agreed to Nolan’s jetpack suggestion while also offering his idea of what a Nolan-directed Avengers movie’s schedule would be.

“If Christopher Nolan had directed The Avengers, we would still be shooting it,” Downey said.

Downey is a MCU veteran, as Iron Man (2008) is the project that launched the multi-billion dollar franchise over 15 years ago. Coincidentally enough, Iron Man hit theaters just one month before Nolan’s The Dark Knight would premiere in cinemas.

As mentioned, Nolan recently shut down the idea of doing another comic book project, but did tease that he is open to two major franchises: Star Wars and James Bond.

“The influence of those movies in my filmography is embarrassingly apparent. It would be an amazing privilege to do one,” Nolan said about helming a Bond film. “At the same time, when you take on a character like that you’re working with a particular set of constraints.”

Oppenheimer hits theaters on Friday, July 21st.