Christopher Nolan's expressed joy on Cillian Murphy 'leading' Oppenheimer with classy gesture

When Christopher Nolan signed Cillian Murphy up to take on the lead role in Oppenheimer he shared his delight at the actor joining the project with a special note on his script.

Cillian opened up about the touching note as he showed off his copy of the script while on a campaign tour for the movie. The screenplay was printed on red paper and written with black ink to make sure that it couldn't be photocopied.

Cillian brought the script along to his appearance on CBS' 60 Minutes where he showed off the title page that featured Nolan's dedication which read: "Dearest Cillian. Finally, a chance to see you lead… Love, Chris."

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The duo have worked together on several projects spanning the last 20 years with six movies under their belts. The body of work includes three Batman movies, as well as Inception, Dunkirk and Oppenheimer.

However, Cillian's first lead role for Christopher only came with Oppeneimer. Cillian told Associated Press prior to Oppenheimer opening in theaters he "was desperate" to lead a Nolan movie.

He said: "I have always said publicly and privately, to Chris, that if I'm available and you want me to be in a movie, I'm there. I don't really care about the size of the part. But deep down, secretly, I was desperate to play a lead for him."

Cillian got his wish when Christopher cold-called him to offer him the part in the hugely successful movie. He explained: "He's so understated and self-deprecating and, in his very English manner, just said, ‘Listen, I've written this script, it's about Oppenheimer. I'd like you to be my Oppenheimer. It was a great day… We have this long-standing understanding and trust and shorthand and respect. It felt like the right time to take on a bigger responsibility. And it just so happened that it was a huge one."

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Cillian also admitted he had no fear taking on the role as when you work with Christopher "you know you're with one of the great directors of all time."

He added: "I felt confident going into it with Chris. He's had a profound impact on my life, creatively and professionally. He's offered me very interesting roles and I've found all of them really challenging. And I just love being on his sets."

Oppenheimer went on to become the highest-grossing biographical movie of all time earning more than $950 million at the worldwide box office. Cillian picked up the Oscar for Best Actor for his work as well as winning the coveted prize at both the Golden Globes and the BAFTA Film Awards.

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