Robert Downey Jr. and Matt Damon Cast in New Christopher Nolan Movie

Robert Downey Jr. and Matt Damon are joining the cast of Christopher Nolan's next movie, Oppenheimer, according to Deadline. Sources say Downey and Damon will join Cillian Murphy in the film, which is produced by Universal Pictures. Emily Blunt is also reportedly in talks to join the feature. Nolan will both write and direct the movie based on the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the scientist who led the Manhattan Project while working to create the atomic bomb. The film is set for a July 2023 release, two weeks ahead of the anniversary of the day the atomic bomb fell on Hiroshima.

Currently, there are no details on who Downey and Damon might be playing. Universal's reps did not respond to Deadline's request for comment.

Universal is distributing Oppenheimer in North America and internationally. Nolan is producing along with Emma Thomas and Charles Roven of Atlas Entertainment. The film's primary source is Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the 2005 Oppenheimer biography written by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin.

Nolan taking Oppenheimer to Universal marks the end of a long streak of the director working with Warner Bros. on his major releases dating back to Insomnia in 2002. The move comes after a public row between Nolan and Warner Bros. over whether Tenet would open in theaters or be sent to streaming during the pandemic. 

"Some of our industry's biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service," Nolan said the discourse around Tenet's possible HBO Max release. "Warner Bros. had an incredible machine for getting a filmmaker's work out everywhere, both in theaters and in the home, and they are dismantling it as we speak. They don't even understand what they're losing. Their decision makes no economic sense, and even the most casual Wall Street investor can see the difference between disruption and dysfunction."

Tenet did end up with a theatrical exclusive window when it was released in 2020. Later, it made its streaming debut on HBO Max.

What do you think of Robert Downey Jr. and Matt Damon joining the cast of Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer movie? Let us know how you feel about the casting news in the comments section. Oppenheimer opens in theaters on July 21, 2023.

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