“He didn’t say, ‘Take whatever role you want,’” Murphy explained. “I wasn’t going to steal Leonardo DiCaprio’s part. But [Christopher Nolan] said, ‘I have an idea what you might be good for… Tell me what you think.’ And we both agreed. It’s different for me. It’s not like any character I’ve played before.”
In a recent interview with Total Film Magazine, Cillian Murphy revealed that he met with Christopher Nolan over a year ago and was given two hours to read Inception’s script and decide which characters he felt best suited for. The two agreed Murphy would be good for Fischer, a character “central to the narrative of the film” and the mark for the heist. “Chris has talked about it being an existential heist movie and if you take that, I would be a crucial cog in that heist set-up.”
While many have wondered what the on-set dynamic was like with such a complex script, Cillian assured Total Film that “there is never confusion on a Chris Nolan set. Just to be around him… he has complete confidence in his abilities without ever appearing arrogant. He’s just at ease, and he gives actors great confidence. To feel a director like Chris has faith in you is very liberating.”
The emotionality of the film that Geoff Boucher described in his Hero Complex article on was echoed by Murphy: “The film has a strong emotional core to it – Leo’s character and some of the other characters are trying to work emotional stuff out – but, having said that, it is a big exciting action film. It’s not all about people with their heads in their hands going, ‘Why did I leave that girl?’”
When asked about Batman 3 Murphy wasn’t able to bring details to light, but appeared willing to reprise his Scarecrow role if given the opportunity. “It’s not for me to start campaigning for the Scarecrow to come back but if Chris wants me back in that role, yeah, absolutely, I would love to do it…”
Murphy left Total Film with some encouraging words on what is sure to be something special. “In this age of 3D and phenomenal special effects, we tend to be a little inured to big movies, like, ‘Whatever…’ But Chris is really going to challenge that with Inception. I don’t doubt it.”
Thanks to Barrett for the tip!
