Christopher Nolan Tells the Story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, Partnering with NBCUniversal from the IMAX Screen to the Newsroom

July 25, 2023

Physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer continues to capture the imagination of audiences from the silver screen to primetime nightly news nearly 80 years after the events that changed the course of history. That's in no small part due to Universal Pictures' newest star-studded blockbuster “Oppenheimer” from visionary filmmaker Christopher Nolan.

The film soared past a record-breaking $180 million worldwide to a chorus of rave reviews, with filmmaker Paul Schrader calling it the ‘Best’ and ‘Most Important Film of This Century.’ The movie is “certified fresh” with a stellar 94% fresh critics rating and a 94% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, and an ‘A’ Cinemascore.

“Oppenheimer” is Nolan’s first feature at Universal and a company-wide priority. A Comcast NBCUniversal Symphony title, the company leveraged the unequalled breadth of its portfolio in support of the film. The movie’s historical foundation made for a perfect partnership with NBC’s world class news division.

On July 15, Universal and Syncopy commemorated the anniversary of The Trinity Test with a screening in New York featuring a post-event conversation with filmmaker Christopher Nolan and some of the greatest scientific minds of our time including Dr. Thom Mason, Director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, world-renowned theoretical physicist Dr. Carlo Rovelli, the event's honorary chairmen: Nobel Prize winning theoretical physicist Dr. Kip Thorne, who served as a consultant on the film, and Pulitzer Prize winner Kai Bird, co-author of the book “American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer,” the basis for Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” screenplay. Chuck Todd, the Emmy-winning host of NBC's “Meet the Press,” moderated the conversation which also aired on NBC.

On MSNBC, “Morning Joe” co-host Joe Scarborough sat down for an exclusive interview with “Oppenheimer” writer/director Christopher Nolan and stars Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, and Robert Downey Jr. to discuss the making of the film, which Scarborough described as “breathtaking” and “unlike anything I've ever seen.” The cast opened up about bringing their complex characters to life, shooting on location, the magic of big screen, and more.
Missed the special? Stream it on Peacock

In addition to the primetime special, NBC News Studios debuted its latest documentary, “To End All War: Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb,” intended as a companion film to the Universal blockbuster.

Directed by Christopher Cassel, the documentary explores the moral dilemmas, politics, and aftermath of Oppenheimer's role in the development of the atomic bomb. The story incorporates the perspectives of experts in the field alongside guests such as theoretical physicist Michio Kaku, mechanical engineer and beloved “science guy” Bill Nye, and author Kai Bird.

The documentary was a centerpiece at the recent Aspen Ideas Festival with NBC News' Chief Washington Correspondent Andrea Mitchell leading a session with Cassel and Bird. During the hour-long conversation, the trio shared never-before-seen clips from the documentary, and tied themes from the documentary to timely topics like the war in Ukraine, the development of AI, the COVID-19 pandemic, and more. NBCU News Group was the exclusive media partner of Aspen Ideas.