Christopher Nolan Details Creative Clash With Al Pacino in Insomnia

Christopher Nolan has detailed a story he had working with Al Pacino on Insomnia.

Nolan’s latest movie, Oppenheimer, is releasing in a few days. The filmmaker has had a successful career making mind-bending, action-packed films that have taken a life of their own. He’s known for his Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, Interstellar, and most recently, Tenet. However, one movie of his has gone under the radar.

Insomnia is a psychological thriller he directed in 2002. It is a remake of the 1997 Norwegian movie of the same name, and it is the only film he has directed without a writing credit. The film stars Al Pacino as a detective sent to a small Alaskan town to investigate a murder and is drawn into a game of cat and mouse with the suspect (Robin Williams).

“I had gone up to Pacino after a series of takes and given him a note on what I wanted,” said Nolan about the film. “He told me, ‘I’ve already done that. You can’t see it to the eye, but I’ve done it on the dailies.’ I looked for it, and I was like, ‘Oh, my God,’ because there it was.”

Christopher Nolan adds, “Great film actors can do that, and that’s what I had with Cillian,” referring to Cillian Murphy’s performance in their upcoming film Oppenheimer.

What is the Oppenheimer release date?

Oppenheimer releases on Friday, July 21, 2023, by Universal Pictures.

The cast includes Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Florence Pugh, Rami Malek, Benny Safdie, Michael Angarano, Josh Hartnett, Kenneth Branagh, Dane DeHaan, Alden Ehrenreich, Matthew Modine, Jack Quaid, David Dastmalachian, Jason Clarke, Josh Peck, Devon Bostick, Gary Oldman, and Casey Affleck.