Although Christopher Nolan’s movies, and he himself as a director, are enigmas, those who study him closely have a way of knowing his true feelings. There’s a subtle but unmistakable indicator, and during the filming of Oppenheimer, Emily Blunt came to realize that Nolan’s demeanor, particularly his reactions to scenes, is often betrayed by the telltale changes in his hair.
Whether he’s pleased or disappointed, his hair speaks volumes about his inner thoughts. During a conversation with her longtime friend and co-star Anne Hathaway, the two explored various topics, including Christopher Nolan’s hair, and for good reason. Here’s what they discovered while working with the director in their illustrious careers.
Emily Blunt Cracks the Christopher Nolan Mystery
One persistent complaint about Christopher Nolan’s movies is their complexity, which both attracts and repels viewers. His films often require more than a single viewing to fully grasp the vastness they contain. Nolan himself mirrors this complexity, probably the only Hollywood figure without a smartphone, adding to the mystery.
But what do those close to him make of the mystery surrounding Nolan? Emily Blunt, who worked with the director on the massive 2023 blockbuster Oppenheimer, disclosed that she discovered a key to understanding his moods, his hair.
She noted that Nolan’s hair serves as a clear indicator of his satisfaction with a scene, describing it as “dancing” when he’s particularly pleased, a gesture she takes as a compliment.
In an interview with Variety’s Actors on Actors series, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt, the two gals gabbed about Christopher Nolan and his distinctive hair. Blunt elaborated,
I always feel that with Chris’ hair. I can tell when he is very happy with a take because his hair starts to dance. It’s almost like he vibrates when he’s happy. He’s not going to tell you that he’s that happy, though, because he’s very English.
Hathaway also contributed to unraveling the mystery by sharing her experience while working with “Captain Extraordinary” on the Interstellar set. She said,
When we did “Interstellar,” Matthew McConaughey noted that when we were up in the glacier, the colder it was and the harder the conditions were, the bluer Chris’ eyes became. And the blonder his hair.
Although his hair gave it away, the actors did enjoy receiving that signal from the director. Winning his approval means a lot to many, as he is truly one of the best.
Bizarre Rules Actors Must Follow on Christopher Nolan’s Sets
As previously established, Christopher Nolan doesn’t own a cell phone, or have an email address, a rarity in an age where being constantly online is the norm. Nolan himself admitted to People Magazine that he chose to live off the grid. In addition to this, the director has some bizarre set of rules that actors must follow during filming.
During Variety’s Actors on Actors series in 2020, Anne Hathaway shared insights from her experiences working with Christopher Nolan on films like The Dark Knight Rises and Interstellar. She mentioned Nolan’s unconventional rule about chairs on set, he “doesn’t allow chairs, and his reasoning is, if you have chairs, people will sit, and if they’re sitting, they’re not working.”
Similarly, in Robert Downey Jr.’s discussion with Mark Ruffalo during Actors on Actors, he reflected on the stark set of Oppenheimer, noting the absence of chairs. He described “You kind of feel like you’re being stripped of your armor, which he does intentionally,”
During an interview with Collider, Cillian Murphy revealed that Christopher Nolan shows little sympathy for bathroom breaks. Supporting Murphy’s statement, fellow actors Robert Downey Jr. and Emily Blunt affirmed in a Vanity Fair feature that Nolan strongly discourages interruptions for restroom breaks.
Downey emphasized Nolan’s disdain for any form of wastage, be it time or the unavoidable human need for a bathroom break. To the director’s credit, everything pays off in his crafted cinema, which not only breaks box office records but also deeply impacts people’s lives, something they remember for a lifetime.
Oppenheimer is available to stream on Prime Video.
