Christopher Nolan's next film gets release date: what we know so far

Christopher Nolan is hard at work on the follow-up to hit release Oppenheimer , which swept the board at the Oscars this year and finally won him the Best Director accolade.

The mysterious project is largely shrouded in secrecy but details have begun to emerge.

A release date has been set for Nolan’s next movie, according to a US trade publication, and one of his go-to Hollywood A-listers is slated to take on the lead role.

Here’s what we know about the film so far.

When will Christopher Nolan’s next movie be out?

Unfortunately, fans of the Inception director have a long wait ahead.

His next film is slated for a release in iMax cinemas (of course) on July 16, 2026, Deadline reports , with filming beginning in early 2025.

Insiders have told the publication that Nolan is once again teaming up with Universal to release the project, following their joint success with the ambitious World War II biopic Oppenheimer. However, this has not been confirmed by Universal.

Who will star in the film?

Reports so far suggest Matt Damon is in talks to take on the lead role. Nolan has a rotation of actors he often works with and he’s previously featured the likes of Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy , and Michael Caine in multiple movies.

This time around, it seems he’ll be reuniting with Damon, who took on a supporting role as Lieutenant General Leslie Groves in Oppenheimer.

Damon also appeared in Nolan’s 2014 film Interstellar as Dr Mann, an astronaut sent on a mission to see if another planet could be hospitable to humans.

At present, he’s the only star rumoured to be attached to the project but plenty of other big names are likely to follow.

How successful was Oppenheimer?

Nolan’s next project will follow what was undeniably one of his most successful films to date.

Having been released to critical acclaim – including five stars from the Evening Standard’s critic – Oppenheimer grossed an eye-watering $957m (£731m) worldwide. The staggering figure wasn’t quite enough to make it the highest grossing film of the year – that accolade went to Greta Gerwig’s Barbie , which managed to break the $1bn mark. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was the second-highest, with Oppenheimer in third.

When awards season rolled around, though, Nolan came out on top. Of a possible 14 Oscars , Oppenheimer won seven , including Best Actor for its titular star Murphy, and Best Supporting Actor for Robert Downey Jr ’s portrayal of Admiral Lewis Strauss.

Oppenheimer was also named Best Picture by the Academy while Nolan landed the highly coveted Best Director prize.

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