Oppenheimer's Emily Blunt and Matt Damon praise "mesmeric" Cillian Murphy

Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com last week, Emily Blunt and Matt Damon both outlined why Murphy was the perfect man to play the titular scientist.

"When I read the script, I found him to have so much duality to him," Blunt – who plays Oppenheimer's wife Kitty – explained when asked how much her views on the character changed during the production.

"And he was sort of the perfect actor to play him because Cillian is so mesmeric in that way, and I think I was uncertain as to what his feelings on it were, and how much he was atoning for his sins by playing the martyr at the end, or how much he was truly traumatised by it.

"I think it's the delicacy of Cillian's performance when I watched it – he's such a tragic figure to me, that I wasn't expecting to feel so pulled into him and feel for him."

Meanwhile, Damon – who plays Manhattan Project director Leslie Groves – did not hold back in his praise for the actor, calling his turn "one of the great performances I've ever seen".

"It's a brilliant screen performance," he added. "And you know, Oppenheimer is ultimately… I think that's why you make a movie about him, he's the most probably important person to ever live with this remarkable brain who had these impossible moral questions put to him.

"He lived the most consequential life and there were no easy answers for him, or for us, in kind of investigating his story. And so yeah, I think Cillian was the exact person to play him for sure."

Read more:

• Oppenheimer review: Cillian Murphy is stunning in explosive epic
• Cillian Murphy gives opinion on Oppenheimer: 'I tried not to judge him'

Oppenheimer opens in UK cinemas on Friday 21st July. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.

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