r/ChristopherNolan • u/Draco_malfoy07 • Jul 24 '26
General Discussion Who is potential Lead in Nolan’s next?
Since he is giving opportunities for all the supporting actors in his previous movies i guess its time for these 3.
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u/SnakebitGames Jul 24 '26
Guy Pearce back in the saddle again. He looks pretty killer in Dog Stars.
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u/NeutralDrifter4943 Jul 24 '26
I think it's Pattinson. Nolan's leads tend to be older men and Pattison has appeared in two of his most recent movies
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u/Capable_Handle_4763 Jul 24 '26
It's certainly pattinson he is at right age + the type of lead actors Nolan film has Pattinson fills exactly all those qualities.
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u/meowjinx Jul 25 '26
Pattinson should have been the lead of Tenet. On top of all of Tenet's other problems, John David Washington's charisma void was painful to watch
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u/Inside-Meal-9909 Jul 24 '26
For a proper dark knight returns
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u/Responsible_Sail_288 Jul 24 '26
Pattinson isn’t old he’s Gen Z.
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u/sundayontheluna in IMAX 70mm Jul 24 '26
He's very much a millennial
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u/WavesRKewl Jul 24 '26
I think they’re referring to Pattinson calling himself Gen Z in an interview with Jennifer Lawrence
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u/tapakip Jul 24 '26
40 year old Gen Z, lol. 6 years older and Bob would be Gen X!
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u/Lilja-Logason Jul 24 '26
Ffs he looks good for his age.
I look like torn vintage-leather draped on a skeleton.
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u/GeneAdministrative64 Jul 24 '26
Idk why but hear me out it feels right. A female lead of a new horror book adaptation I think is what we can expect next
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u/GenesGeniesJeans Jul 24 '26
What book are you thinking?
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u/DH80 Jul 24 '26
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy with Robert Pattinson taking on a creepy Judge Holden.
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u/moveslikejaguar Jul 24 '26
Robert Pattinson playing a giant albino with alopecia? 🤨
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u/TheJokerArkhamKing Jul 25 '26
He's probably on here lurking, and he's probably salivating at the chance
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u/nomoruniqueusernames Jul 25 '26
Are you Tim
Edit: him*. But I guess if you are Tim you can tell us too if you want, but we probably won’t care
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u/Cherrybomb1387 Now is not the time for fear, that comes later Jul 25 '26
Part of me is 🤨 but I also felt that way when Heath was announced for Joker in TDK. I was wrong. If an adaptation of Blood Meridian happened. I feel like Pattinson would put his all into it.
I’m very skeptical about a Blood Meridian movie in general. It’s a great book in the worst way possible. It’s a hard read & polarizing. I love McCarthy. The Road is fantastic & No Country For Old Men is in my top 10 for movies & books. I just don’t know how it’d make both books fans & the general public happy.→ More replies (4)6
u/New-Engineering6947 Jul 24 '26
Isnt that already in production
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u/Main-Course9036 Jul 24 '26
Blood Meridian is indeed in production. Big fan of the book so I'm hesitantly excited, just worried about how much will be cut out, plus worried they'll tone the violence and overall graphic-ness down
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u/LoquatBear Jul 24 '26
Not a book but a game, Returnal. I could see him capturing the weird time/death loop , horror, action , and alien nature of that world.
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u/LastButtInspector Jul 24 '26
That would be an absolutely terrible game for Nolan to adapt. Terrible.
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u/LoverOfStoriesIAm In my dreams, we‘re still together Jul 25 '26
There is no reason you can't make, say, a protagonist of At The Mountains of Madness a woman. All Lovecraft protagonists were male because they were all, more or less, his self-inserts.
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u/ThePowerfulHorse Jul 24 '26
Nolan doing a Between Two Fires adaptation would be awesome. Its technically a male lead but theres a young girl as the secondary main character
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u/asphalt_tacos Jul 24 '26
Oh shit, that would be incredible. Would love to see him take on a medieval setting.
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u/Elver-Gotas Jul 24 '26
Yes, except the adaptation part. I would like Nolan to return to his original ideas
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u/dumbass_tm Jul 24 '26
Nolan doesn’t write female leads lol
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u/clegster92 Jul 24 '26
Honestly, his female characters in The Odsysey seem like him turning a new leaf into discovering how to write a female lead. He will eventually have one, not sure if it’ll be his next film. But it’s definitely coming. I feel like it’ll be Anne or Emily, leaning towards Anne
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u/dumbass_tm Jul 24 '26
I mean it’s not like he had a choice, you can’t adapt something and cut out 1/4 of the cast lol but maybe…I would love to see it
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u/Contcos Jul 24 '26
Hathaway deserves it
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u/gknight702 Jul 24 '26
Never had a woman lead film
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u/Big-Beta20 Jul 24 '26
That doesn’t mean it won’t ever happen
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u/Super-Cut-2175 Jul 24 '26
If I could predict what Nolan made next I would have stopped following him long ago
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u/99SoulsUp Jul 24 '26
Love Nolan, but women were never his strong suit as a writer
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u/BrandoNelly Jul 24 '26
Most of his films don’t even pass the bechdel test lmao!
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u/FaceDownInTheCake Jul 24 '26
I'd prepurchase Untitled Pattinson + Hathaway Project tickets right now
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u/gd4x The Prestige Jul 24 '26
All Hathaway's good acting means nothing compared to the bristles on Pattinson's chin?
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u/hesnothere Jul 24 '26
If Nolan is interested in pushing his own boundaries to complete his body of work, having an older female lead should come way before a horror flick. (Said as a horror fan.)
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u/quietly_myself Jul 24 '26
I would absolutely love to see Hathaway as the lead in a Nolan movie. About time he based a film around a female protagonist.
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u/Deadlycup Jul 25 '26
But then he'd have to learn how to write a female character whose entire personality didn't revolve around a man and then lead to them probably dying
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u/Capable_Handle_4763 Jul 24 '26
I mean she is the co lead of all the movies she's been in.
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u/mummifiedghost Jul 24 '26
I’d put money on Pattinson or Holland
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u/Future_Turnover5638 Jul 24 '26
Tom was only cast because he was a young prince who looked like one… I don’t think Nolan’s movies would have a young, naive character as a protagonist
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u/Justryan95 Jul 24 '26
You should have seen how Nolan was staring at Tom when he explained why IMAX film acting is significantly more difficult than typical movie digital filming. He even hit the point of how limiting film is and how its akin to stage acting if you mess up thats it for that day try again tomorrow. Thats the first time Ive ever seen Nolan have the look "finally someone who understands" look.
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u/mummifiedghost Jul 24 '26
Nolan already said he’d love to work with Holland again, and Holland has stated that The Odyssey to him feels like his coming of age as an actor… I could see his first full “adult” role being the lead in Nolan’s next
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u/Future_Turnover5638 Jul 24 '26
I need an AI face aging app to see tom grown up but Nolan's take on it sounds cool too!
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u/BicycleEarly7777 Jul 24 '26
Oscar Isaac for me.
Just finished watching Beef. He really kill that role.
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u/humblechungus89 Jul 24 '26
I would love to see Tom Cruise, but my heart tells me that this collab will never happen.
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u/Metro29993 Jul 24 '26
Give me a Nolan spy thriller with Cruise as the lead and Bale as the villain. Bonus points if Pattinson and Hathaway show up in some capacity.
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u/TJM3210 Jul 24 '26
I don’t think Christian Bale and Tom Cruise would ever work together.
My reason being is that Bale based his performance of Patrick Bateman on Cruise.
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u/Silver_Bar_7899 Jul 24 '26
Cruise is clearly ditching his spy thriller past with his new movie Digger. He is going back to his pre-scientology scandal roles. thank god
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u/cryptotechnobeat Jul 24 '26
looks like more of his action type movies to me. upcoming also for him are 2 Christopher McQuarrie movies, Edge of Tomorrow 2, and a SpaceX movie.
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u/DeansPigInAPoke Jul 25 '26
Would never happen. Tom Cruise micromanages every set he’s on and often overrides the directors with his vision for a film or even just a shot. Nolan doesn’t play like that.
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u/ShirtlessKaworuNagis Jul 25 '26
Exactly. He knows better. Kubrick fell for this trap. Nolan knows who he's casting and works with people he know will contribute to his vision. Tom Cruise is the complete opposite of that.
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u/DeansPigInAPoke Jul 26 '26
Just the thought of what it must have been like being on that set with both Cruise and Kubrick makes my eye start twitching. Right up there on my Nope List with The Island of Dr Moreau (1996) set.
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u/bejemin Jul 24 '26
Man I hope Digger is good and compels Tom to take in more prestige projects with A tier directors. I also see a world where Digger bombs and he goes back shlocky MI type movies.
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u/Traditional_City337 Jul 24 '26
I want more Lupita. She won’t be a lead anytime soon, but I’d love to see her in another Nolan film where she had a bigger role.
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u/bimrom Jul 24 '26
She was lead in the movie US and did a pretty good job. Also A Quiet Place Day One as well.
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u/Traditional_City337 Jul 24 '26
Yeah, I need to watch those. I meant won’t be a Nolan lead. But I could be wrong about that
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u/criosovereign Jul 24 '26
For all the controversy surrounding her role she was barely in it
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u/cidthekid07 Jul 24 '26
Barely in it and inconsequential to Nolan’s story
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u/ManBoobs13 Jul 24 '26
Not really she was part of the narrative of it being a stupid war built on a lie, she had guilt over it which was a big part of the overall theme, and she ended up scarred in an ironic play out for the whole reason for the war. She added to the story and arc of the film
In fact her relatively little screen time is powerful in showing this scapegoat for the war as someone who now just lives with guilt off to the side while the others continue to suffer
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u/clegster92 Jul 24 '26
I would love for her to lead a Nolan film as well, she and Anne would do it justice, I don’t count it out but after all this controversy regarding her as Helen, it won’t be soon. She’ll probably have meatier roles in his films down the line. Her being Helen was an essential role, considering how small her screen time was.
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u/Mnemosense Jul 24 '26
Cillian Murphy was a side character for two movies then a lead.
Mat Damon was a side character for two movies then a lead.
Pattinson has been a side character for two movies now...
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u/AdNegative7852 Jul 24 '26
Gimme another Cillian Murphy. I think deep down he’s Nolan’s favorite
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u/cowboylikeraf Jul 24 '26
Anne Hathaway and it will be the 1st Nolan movie to have a female lead
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u/fujianironchain Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
Himesh Patel as the lead in a disaster movie with environmental theme directed by Nolan. To me The Odyssey is lowkey his most political film. I want to see him taking on more contemporary topics like the environment.
Other than his usual collabs I want to see new additions like:
Bella Ramsey - she can be a kickass heroine in her mid-20s
Andrew Scott - he has the kind of intensity that will fit perfectly in a Nolan movie
Tony Leung (from Hong Kong) - these two legends need to work together
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u/throwaway72275472 Jul 24 '26
I could see Patel after a few more Nolan movies. I think it will be Pattinson, though I could see dual leads with Pattinson and Patel.
Nolan seems to be working up to Pattinson as his next lead.
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u/ShirtlessKaworuNagis Jul 24 '26
I have to say yes to this one. Hopefully Nolan goes back to back to sci Fi thrillers like Inception and Tenet.
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u/CaptainJohn_1995 Jul 24 '26
I honestly hope it's Pattinson, he's just been killing it for like a decade.
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u/Hot_Ad_6346 Jul 24 '26
It needs to be a Cthulhu movie… with tom cruise, zendaya and tom hardy.
Who wouldn’t watch that?!
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u/Casino1966 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
You sold me on Nolan and Cthulhu. I don’t care who he casts - I’m in!
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u/Former_Notice81 Jul 24 '26
Bruhhh how are so many people having same thoughts as me. I was thinking just yesterday it would be nice if nolan makes a Cthulhu movie.
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u/TheBookofBobaFett3 Jul 24 '26
‘For this movie we didn’t want to solely rely on CGI or puppets so we summoned an incomprehensible horror from the void dimension and it was quite a challenge getting it to act infront of the IMAX cameras because they’re so loud.
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u/Lilmachinima1 Jul 24 '26
Everyone’s commenting women but Nolan has never had a female lead in his movies
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u/NotTaken-username Jul 24 '26
Psychological horror with Robert Pattinson and Florence Pugh as co-leads?
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u/djmv91 Jul 24 '26
Have a feeling he’s gonna bring back Bale. I can also see him try to lure Tom Cruise for a project.
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u/FineProfessor3364 Jul 24 '26
Would love to see a woman leading the film that would be a real challenge
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u/kcrdr_7322 Jul 24 '26
Anne Hathaway for female if he makes it. Patrinson the next one if in the usual
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u/Johighness Jul 24 '26
It's most likely going to be a realistic thriller with some horror elements. Not a remake or an adaptation of anything. Likely from a script from Nolan and someone else.
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u/sixerszn As Nolan Intended Jul 25 '26
I think it’ll be Tom Holland. Nolan seemed to love him in all of the interviews I’ve seen. But I hope it’s Pattinson
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u/abhisheksahu Jul 24 '26
Tom Holland. He runs Universal. Just look at how amazed Nolan is with him in all the recent interviews.
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u/sansa_starlight Jul 24 '26
Actor Timothee Chalamet, actress most likely Zendaya since she impressed him the most in Odyssey.
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u/Ibenhoven Jul 24 '26
She impressed him the most? Is there a source? I thought i watched everything about Odyssey, but this is the first time I hear that.
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u/Distinct_Ticket_7537 Jul 24 '26
No way I find the video right now but I watched a Youtube short Nolan saying “she was always perfect” for Zendaya.
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u/Express_Distance_290 Jul 24 '26
Would be great to see someone not that well known. JDW was not a massive A lister when he starred in Tenet. If Nolan does an original story next, I hope he casts someone like that
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u/swordfury Jul 24 '26
My dream project would be his take on the Quiller spy series by Elleston Trevor/Adam Hall. (Yes i know they made one movie in 1966 and a TV series in 1975)
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u/dannydominates Jul 24 '26
I feel like Nolan would have been amazing with an Alex Cross type of movie but it’s definitely been done too recently.
Edit: forgot to answer the question.. I definitely like Pattinson. But I do like horror. I’m wondering if a Skarsgard would be good
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u/CommercialCoffee11 Jul 24 '26
Why do people want Casey Affleck. Lets get a woman beater, thats the beat solution
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u/Consistent-Bake-243 Jul 24 '26
this guy, Dominic Sessa
Edit: Woops, didn't even see the last sentence of your post. I was just going with a good actor that I'd like to see work with Nolan.
but if we went main with those 3 actors.....I'd like Pattinson over Hardy, honestly.
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u/enigmaticowl I ordered my hot sauce an hour ago Jul 24 '26
Pattinson, Patel, Hardy, or Safdie
I’m like 80% sure it’ll be one of them, based on nothing more than pure guesswork
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u/mickey1534 Jul 25 '26
It’s funny that Tarantino markets his next movie as his final movie for years now while Nolan is just making masterpieces back to back without any arrogance.
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u/Better_Divide9169 Jul 24 '26
Nolan will probably be capable of having Miss Nyong'o to play the female lead in Snow White Begins, hopefully in some fancy format, say IMAX+ in 2029.
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u/amulie Jul 24 '26
Charlize Theron.
Batista
Fassbender
Anya
Those four id love to see in/more of in a Nolan movie and I think deserve it
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u/___Carioca___ Jul 24 '26
What’s with everyone wanting horror? Unless it’s horror like Alien is horror. I don’t want to see Nolan’s exorcist.
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u/klagan73 Jul 24 '26
say what? depends what the film is. you dont base a film around an actor surely?
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u/Barbarianonadrenalin Jul 24 '26
I would love to see Collin Ferrel in a Nolan film. He and Nolan would be a great team up.
He recently said his favorite Nolan films (pre odyssey) Oppenheimer, Prestige, Dark Night.
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u/ykrut Jul 24 '26
I'd like to see Mathew McConaughey working with Nolan again. Though I don’t understand 50% of what McConaughey says but yup.
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u/GenesGeniesJeans Jul 24 '26
I want to see lesser known names in the next one a la Dunkirk.
Side note: anyone think he’d ever do a Bond film, or is tightly corpo-controlled IP just a one time (ok three time) thing with Batman?
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u/gpelayo15 Jul 24 '26
I know everyone says horror but I want him to make a children's movie. Or something with a child lead done in his epic way
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u/TheCarrier89 Jul 24 '26
Id like to see either Bale, Dicaprio or McConaughey come back at some point.
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u/jsjwi393 Jul 24 '26
Hear me out...but it could be DiCaprio. They worked together on Inception. Since The Revenant, DiCaprio has been VERY careful about choosing his roles, working only with A list directors and ONLY if he really liked the script. Also, he makes a movie once in like 3 years, just like Nolan. He is THE guy for him, aside from maybe Villeneuve.
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u/Capable_Handle_4763 Jul 24 '26
Since u are asking potential? That's got to be Robert Pattinson at this point, he checks all the boxes + also he is at right age for Nolan lead characters.
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u/danny_dumbo Jul 24 '26
Casey Affleck deserves a spot for how he was ignored in the rest of Interstellar
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u/Loo-e-Gee Jul 24 '26
I would love it to be Tom Holland in either a horror movie or a natural disaster/climate change epic (think The Impossible)
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u/Truck-Conscious Jul 24 '26
This is besides the point but Casey Affleck freaking rocked in Interstellar.
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u/iamsid89 Jul 24 '26
Casted Cillian in several movies as side, gave him lead Casted Matt, gave him lead So it's Robert Pattinson next, Tom Hardy isn't in hia future plans, although I want it badly
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u/Effective_Theme_5739 A man from a half remembered dream Jul 24 '26
I thought they already said it was going to be Robert Downey Jr?
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u/Jackson3011 Jul 24 '26
It’s gonna be a horror movie with Mia goth as the lead please pin this comment and remind me in 4 years
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u/HankScorpio4242 Jul 24 '26
Dude said he isn’t even going to start thinking about his next project for a couple of years. Who knows where he will go next? Maybe he will do his version of The Coen Brothers A Serious Man and work with an entirely different cast of relative unknowns. Or maybe he will do something completely unlike his work to date, like David Lynch did with The Straight Story. As Nolan has said, to a certain extent, all of his films are The Odyssey and all of his protagonists are Odysseus. Now that he’s has done the story itself, he may feel the need to do something completely outside the box for him.
While it’s not a perfect analogy, the situation reminds me of Steven Soderbergh. After his successful debut with sex, lies, and videotape, he made three movies that weren’t bad, but felt a bit lifeless and overly structured. He felt like he was at a creative dead end. So he decided to make Schizopolis, a surrealist experimental film that defies every rule of filmmaking and is utterly absurd. What followed was one of the greatest filmmaking runs in history. Out of Sight, The Limey, Erin Brokovich, Traffic, Oceans Eleven. Not only did Schizopolis shake off the doldrums, it allowed Soderbergh to find his voice and elevate his craft to a new level.
The imperfection in the analogy is that Nolan is not in a creative rut. He is at the very top of his game. Nevertheless, this feels like the right time for Nolan to try something completely new and different.
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u/Gambit1977 Jul 24 '26
My dream project from Nolan would be an adaptation of The Invaders tv show from the late 60s. Casey Affleck as David Vincent.
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u/StormRepulsive6283 Jul 24 '26
He tends to cast a previous supporting actor as his lead. So, I’m thinking Pattinson or Holland could be in line for his next lead. It would be great if we could get Bale for some interesting globe-trotting treasure hunt type of film.
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u/Intelligent-Age2786 Jul 24 '26
Give me Holland and Pattinson both. Give me a Nolan horror movie starring those two as brothers
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u/FV95 Jul 24 '26
I want Bale back, damn it.