Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer and Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, starring Tom Cruise, who is fresh off the massive success of 2022's Top Gun: Maverick, are set to be two of the biggest blockbusters of this summer. However, since their release dates are so close to one another – Mission: Impossible 7 hit theaters on July 12, while Oppenheimer comes out on July 21 – the two movies have naturally been pitted against each other.
Specifically, there has been some debate over what movie deserves to spend more time in IMAX theaters. While Cruise strongly believes Dead Reckoning Part One should be watched on the biggest screen possible, Oppenheimer is the clear favorite for the entertainment technology company and will play on IMAX screens for a comfortable three-week period.
The Biggest Action Movie Ever
Meanwhile, fans of the Mission: Impossible franchise will have just nine days to experience Ethan Hunt's latest adventure on an IMAX screen. This limited window reportedly infuriated Cruise, who argued that IMAX would lose a significant amount of money by not letting Dead Reckoning Part One play for longer.
According to a report from Puck, Cruise felt that he was being unfairly treated by the company, especially after the aforementioned Top Gun: Maverick was said to have "saved" cinemas just last year. In 2022, the long-awaited Top Gun sequel made over $1.4 billion at the global box office, with $110 million of its total gross coming from IMAX screenings.
It's likely that Cruise wants Mission: Impossible 7 to be played on IMAX screens for much longer because he knows that the film is even bigger than Top Gun: Maverick. After all, he and the crew behind the Mission: Impossible movies have continuously grown more ambitious with each entry in the franchise.
For example, the trailers and behind-the-scenes featurettes for Dead Reckoning Part One have showcased Cruise pulling off stunts such as driving a motorbike off a cliff, engaging in a fistfight on a high-speed train, and speed flying down a mountain just a few feet away from the rocks at all times.
Actor Cary Elwes, who is portraying a brand-new character in Mission: Impossible 7, has even claimed that the movie is the "biggest action blockbuster of all time." Therefore, it is understandable why Cruise would want the hard work he and the entire crew put into the movie to be celebrated on IMAX screens.
IMAX Is Playing Favorites
Despite Cruise's disappointment, IMAX has remained adamant that Oppenheimer will be given priority over all other movies following its release. In an apologetic statement amidst the drama, IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond said,
"I feel sad in a way we can’t accommodate all of them. I know Mission: Impossible is going to be a really big movie. Nolan has a special place in Imax’s heart because he uses our cameras and promotes us. It’s not a matter of us saying which we can make more money on."
For the majority of his career, Nolan has utilized IMAX cameras to bring his ambitious vision to life. This is an important difference to point out regarding the filming process of the two movies. While IMAX cameras were used on Dead Reckoning Part One, the production mostly relied on the Z CAM E2-F6 to capture the groundbreaking action. Meanwhile, Nolan chose to primarily shoot on IMAX 65mm film stock and also further revolutionized the industry by being the first director to ever shoot portions of a movie with an IMAX black and white camera.
By using IMAX cameras for so many years, Nolan has become one of the most well-respected blockbuster filmmakers of all time. The groundbreaking use of IMAX cameras when filming movies such as The Dark Knight, Interstellar, and Dunkirk have earned the director, and by association, IMAX as a company, immense acclaim within the industry.
Even when he is promoting his films, Nolan almost serves as an ambassador for IMAX by insisting that he could not achieve his vision without that format and their cameras, which is likely why the director will always be the top priority for the company, even when he is going up against one of the biggest movie stars of all time.
An Explosive Experience
In the build-up to Oppenheimer, which stars Cillian Murphy as the titular character, as well as a star-studded supporting cast, including Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., and Florence Pugh, Nolan has once again had nothing but overwhelmingly positive things to say about the IMAX format. Speaking about using IMAX cameras on Oppenheimer, the director said,
"The sharpness and the clarity and the depth of the image is unparalleled. The headline, for me, is by shooting on IMAX 70mm film, you’re really letting the screen disappear. You’re getting a feeling of 3D without the glasses. You’ve got a huge screen and you’re filling the peripheral vision of the audience. You’re immersing them in the world of the film."
While Mission: Impossible 7 and Oppenheimer are both movies that were made on the grandest scale, Nolan's unwavering loyalty to the format is being rewarded by IMAX in this summer's biggest blockbuster feud. Audiences will be able to see how IMAX cameras captured the making of the atomic bomb when Oppenheimer explodes into theaters on July 21, 2023.