‘Oppenheimer’ is now the most successful WW2 film ever

Oppenheimer has passed $500million (£392m) at the global box office, making it the most successful WW2 film ever.

• READ MORE: ‘Oppenheimer’ review: Christopher Nolan’s mind-blowing biopic hits like a bomb to the brain

Cillian Murphy stars in Christopher Nolan‘s critically acclaimed film as Robert J. Oppenheimer, the real-life American physicist who played a pivotal role in the creation of the atomic bomb.

This past weekend, the film passed the huge box office milestone and its total figure now sits at $552.9m.

According to Box Office Mojo, that takes it beyond Dunkirk ($527m), Saving Private Ryan ($482m), and Pearl Harbor ($449m) to become the highest grossing film of all time to be set during the second world war.

However, it is still lagging behind its box office rival Barbie, which hit $1bn at the global box office this weekend.

Oppenheimer scored a glowing five-star review from NME upon its release, with Paul Bradshaw writing: “Not just the definitive account of the man behind the atom bomb, Oppenheimer is a monumental achievement in grown-up filmmaking. For years, Nolan has been perfecting the art of the serious blockbuster – crafting smart, finely-tuned multiplex epics that demand attention; that can’t be watched anywhere other than in a cinema, uninterrupted, without distractions. But this, somehow, feels bigger.”

Speaking exclusively to NME, Murphy recently explained how the cast of Oppenheimer were impacted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Murphy said the cast were hyper aware of the events in Ukraine, especially after it emerged that Russian president Vladimir Putin had responded to international sanctions by lining his borders with tactical nuclear missiles.

“It was everywhere, and we were fully aware of that,” Murphy said of the invasion. “The threat [of nuclear war] has escalated and receded over the years since 1945… and now it’s back. It’s always there, this Sword Of Damocles that is hanging over us.”

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