Oppenheimer has made headlines several times since its release on July 21st. One of the more surprising reasons behind the movie’s infamy is the sex scene between Cillian Murphy and Florence Pugh. The scene in question, which takes place between Murphy’s Oppenheimer and his mistress Jean Tatlock, has raised a lot of eyebrows, leading many people to question how necessary sex scenes are in movies at all. For his part, Cillian Murphy thinks the sex scenes in Oppenheimer are “vital” to explaining who his character is, no matter how awkward filming the scene got.
Directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer tells the life story of J. Robert Oppenheimer, who led the Manhattan Project and eventually was called the “father of the atomic bomb.” Despite being obviously intelligent, Cillian Murphy’s Oppenheimer is far from the “antisocial nerd” stereotype, being a womanizer long before the atomic bomb was ever even an idea. While he was a professor at Berkley, Oppenheimer attended a party full of local communists and met Jean Tatlock, a psychologist on par with his own intelligence. The pair fall into bed together with a hard cut. While Florence Pugh is shown topless, nothing too explicit is ever on camera.
Was The Sex in ‘Oppenheimer’ Necessary? Cillian Murphy Says Yes
As far as sex scenes go, Oppenheimer’s is not too bad. However, its inclusion in the movie has led to some people asking why, if Oppenheimer is about the invention of the atomic bomb, was it necessary to show Oppenheimer having sex with his mistress? Wouldn’t the movie have been fine without the sex and the R-rating? According to Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer wouldn’t have been the same without the scene, calling it “vital” to telling his character’s life story according to Variety:
“I think the relationship that [Oppenheimer] has with Jean Tatlock is one of the most crucial emotional parts of the film,” Murphy explained. “I think if they’re key to the story then they’re worthwhile. Listen, no one likes doing [sex scenes], they’re the most awkward possible part of our job. But sometimes you have to get on with it.”
Christopher Nolan expressed similar views in an Insider interview after the film’s premiere, saying:
“When you look at Oppenheimer’s life and you look at his story, that aspect of his life, the aspect of his sexuality, his way with women, the charm that he exuded, it’s an essential part of his story. It felt very important to understand their relationship and to really see inside it and understand what made it tick without being coy or allusive about it — but to try to be intimate, to try and be in there with him and fully understand the relationship that was so important to him.”
The sex scene between Oppenheimer and Tatlock is far from the only contentious part of Oppenheimer, a movie about a man who made so many divisive choices. However, of all the risky things in the film, the sex scene is probably the easiest to answer. Was it necessary? If you ask Oppenheimer’s leading actor and director, it is, as it expounds the complete picture of who J. Robert Oppenheimer was.
Directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Cillian Murphy and Florence Pugh, Oppenheimer is currently available in theaters around the US.
