Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan Nolan grew up loving films and aspired to be filmmakers. While they have now become esteemed directors and creators today, the road was not smooth sailing and they had to find their footing in the industry during their early days. Nolan’s breakthrough film Memento was based on Jonathan’s short story Memento Mori.
The duo went on to collaborate as writers in other Nolan films including The Prestige, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, and Interstellar. The two brothers clearly shared similar tastes in what they wanted to make and what films meant to them. However, Jonathan recently revealed an incident where he and Nolan i
Christopher Nolan Turned Down Jonathan Nolan’s Plea to Watch The Goonies in Theatres
Jonathan Nolan is currently promoting his new Amazon series Fallout and recently appeared on the Happy Sad Confused Podcast where he talked about various facets of his life and career as a screenwriter and producer in the industry. While he may not have directed any feature films, he assisted his brother Christopher Nolan by helping him write many of his films.
Jonathan is very active on the TV side, creating shows like Person of Interest and Westworld. Jonathan recalled his early years with Nolan, being in love with films and going to watch them regularly at a theatre near them. While their successful collaborations over the years proved that they had the same mentality and approach to film, they were divided on two films that were simultaneously playing in theatres back during their childhood.
In the interview, Jonathan stated that he and Nolan frequently watch films in Lester Square in London. As they went to watch Ridley Scott‘s 1985 film Legend (Nolan is a huge Scott fan), Jonathan was intrigued by another film playing in another theatre which was Richard Donner‘s The Goonies. Being the older brother, Nolan refused Jonathan’s plea to watch The Goonies. He said on the Happy Sad Confused Podcast,
“Our tastes are similar but diversion…He (Nolan) would occasionally, we would go down and watch films in Lester Square. I remember going down to watch, I think we went down to watch Legend. Chris was obsessed with Ridley Scott from a very young age. I think we were on the way and The Goonies was playing at the Empire and I had the temerity to suggest that we go watch The Goonies which was roundly shot down”
While both The Goonies and Legend are directed by maverick filmmakers, they are drastically different genres and this seems to be where the brothers’ taste slightly differed. A young Jonathan was enamored by the larger-than-life adventure film and Nolan was going with the headspace of watching another film by Scott.
Nevertheless, they both went on to make fantastic worlds of their own with their individual projects. The films they have seen and experienced have clearly influenced them, to become filmmakers who dream big and create original material.
Jonathan Nolan is Interested to Make a Feature Film Down the Line
Jonathan Nolan has grown up watching his older brother Christopher Nolan evolve from an indie filmmaker to a big name in Hollywood currently. While he has been a co-writer in many of Nolan’s films, Jonathan has never directed a feature film in his career. Mostly known for his television work, Jonathan recently revealed to GQ that he would love to make a film in the future.
Jonathan stated that being a film director became more of Nolan’s liking while he excelled on the TV side with projects like Person of Interest and Westworld. He further claimed that he is a control freak and prefers full creative control of his projects from beginning to end, much like his brother. He said,
“I’d love to make a feature at some point. The truth is that the opportunities in television have just been extraordinary for the last 10 years… I think part of it was for me, growing up with Chris, it was kind of his thing. It took a little longer for me to realize that, as a fellow control freak, I like being able to guide the process all the way through.”
Nolan is the executive producer on the upcoming Fallout series, where he also directed some episodes. The Amazon show led by Ella Purnell and Walton Goggins consists of 8 episodes and will be released on Amazon Prime on April 11, 2024.
