Here's What The "Oppenheimer" Cast Looks Like Vs. The Real People, And Holy Hell, They Reaaaaaalllly Nailed It

I still think there should be an Oscar for casting, because DAMN, the Oppenheimer team knocked it out of the park.

Now that Christopher Nolan's highly-anticipated film Oppenheimer has finally made it to theaters, let's take a look at how perfectly the film nailed the casting...

Note: no plot spoilers ahead, only simple character descriptions. 

1. Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer:

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You're probably familiar with Murphy's frequent collaborations with director Christopher Nolan, having appeared in five of his films, The Dark Knight trilogy, Inception, and Dunkirk, but Oppenheimer marks the first time the talented Irish actor takes a leading role in one of Nolan's films.

J. Robert Oppenheimer, the titular character of the film, is, of course, best known as the "father of the atomic bomb."

2. Emily Blunt as Katherine "Kitty" Oppenheimer

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Blunt, who worked with costar Murphy not too long ago in A Quiet Place Part II, is well-known for her impressive breadth of work which covers a range of genres from The Devil Wears Prada to Sicario to Mary Poppins Returns. And, of course, for her collaboration with husband John Krasinski in A Quiet Place, for which she won a SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer was a biologist, botanist, and the wife of Oppenheimer. 

3. Matt Damon as Leslie Richard Groves:

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Damon, who most recently starred (to much critical acclaim) in Air earlier this year, has received several Oscar nominations including for his acting in films like The Martian, Invictus, and Good Will Hunting. On top of all that, he also won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay with Good Will Hunting.

Leslie Groves, Jr. was an officer in the US Army Corps. of Engineers who had just overseen the construction of the Pentagon when he was given the assignment of leading the Manhattan Project. Groves made significant contributions to the work of building the atomic bomb.

4. Robert Downey, Jr. as Lewis Strauss:

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Downey, Jr., perhaps best known for his long stint as Iron Man in the Marvel films and his two Oscar nominations for his work in Chaplin and Tropic Thunder, was actually someone Nolan and producer Emma Thomas had been wanting to work with "for many years." And, in case you're wondering, yes, RDJ actually shaved back his hairline for his role in this film.

Lewis Strauss was a founding commissioner of the Atomic Energy Commission in 1947, playing a key role in shaping America’s post-war nuclear policy.

5. Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock:

Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures, Dr. Hugh Tatlock/Martin J. Sherwin Collection in the Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. / Via britannica.com

Pugh has swiftly risen to fame in the last several years by headlining popular films like Black Widow, Midsommar, and Little Women (which earned her an Oscar nomination).

Jean Tatlock was a Stanford-educated psychiatrist who had an intense yet tortured romance with J. Robert Oppenheimer.

6. Josh Hartnett as Ernest Lawrence:

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Hartnett, whose role in Oppenheimer marks a return to movies after taking time off to focus on raising kids, is no stranger to war and military-related films, having starred in films like Pearl Harbor and Black Hawk Down back in the day.

Ernest Lawrence was an American physicist and Nobel Prize winner who worked on the Manhattan Project and was good friends with Oppenheimer.

7. Benny Safdie as Edward Teller:

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You may know Safdie from his work in popular indie films like Good Time and Uncut Gems or perhaps for his more recent roles in films like Licorice Pizza and Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret?.

Edward Teller, aka "the father of the hydrogen bomb," was a Hungarian-American theoretical physicist and an early member of the Manhattan Project.

8. Dylan Arnold as Frank Oppenheimer:

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Arnold is probably best known for playing Noah in the film After and the sequel After We Collided as well as his turn as Cameron in the rebooted Halloween (2018) film and its sequel Halloween Kills.

Frank Oppenheimer was a particle physicist and younger brother of Robert Oppenheimer. Robert recruited Frank to work on the Manhattan Project.

9. David Krumholtz as Isidor Rabi:

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Krumholtz — who's had a long career spanning films and shows like Serenity, The Deuce, The Santa Clause, and even Addams Family Values — apparently captured Nolan’s attention with his acclaimed performance on the CBS drama Numb3rs as a math prodigy who solves crimes for the FBI. 

Isidor Rabi was an American physicist and Nobel Prize winner who was a good friend of Oppenheimer. Although Oppenheimer tried to recruit him for the Manhattan Project, Rabi ultimately declined an official role. However, he did support Oppenheimer by working as a consultant.

10. Josh Peck as Kenneth Bainbridge

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Peck, who broke out as a child star in the early '90s and '00s, is well-known for his role in the Nickelodeon show Drake & Josh. However, as an adult, Peck has appeared in a number of films (many of them voice roles) like the Red Dawn remake from 2012, How I Met Your Father, and of course, several of the Ice Age films.

Kenneth Bainbridge was an American physicist at Harvard University and the director of the Manhattan Project's Trinity nuclear test.

11. Gustaf Skarsgård as Hans Bethe:

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Skarsgård, an acclaimed Swedish actor, is best known for his work in the TV show Vikings and Ben Affleck’s recent directorial effort, Air. And, yes, he is brother to Alexander and Bill, in case you were wondering.

Hans Bethe headed the theoretical division of the Manhattan Project and developed the design for the bombs detonated at Trinity and Nagasaki. 

12. Devon Bostick as Seth Neddermeyer:

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Bostick is best known for his roles in the first three Diary of a Wimpy Kid films as well as his role as Jasper Jordan on the TV series The 100.

Seth Neddermeyer was an American physicist who worked on the Manhattan Project.

13. Jack Quaid as Richard Feynman:

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Quaid, son of actors Meg Ryan and Dennis Quaid, broke out in the series The Boys as vigilante Hughis Campbell. He also starred in the recent Scream reboot films.

Richard Feynman was an American theoretical physicist and Nobel Prize winner who worked on the Manhattan project.

14. Michael Angarano as Robert Serber:

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Angarano started his career early breaking out as a child star in films like Music of the Heart and Almost Famous. More recently, he's starred in films like In a Relationship, Wild Card, and shows like Angelyne and PEN15.

Robert Serber was an American physicist who participated in the Manhattan Project.

15. Danny Deferrari is Enrico Fermi:

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Deferrari, a relative newcomer, is best known for films like Shiva Baby and Ray Donovan: The Movie.

Enrico Fermi was an Italian (and later naturalized American) physicist and the creator of the first nuclear reactor. After emigrating to the United States he worked on the Manhattan project.

16. Olli Haaskivi as Edward Condon:

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Haaskivi, another relative newcomer, has had small roles in films like Motherless Brooklyn and Nancy, as well as roles in shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Edward Condon was an American nuclear physicist and pioneer in quantum mechanics who briefly worked on the Manhattan Project.

17. Dane DeHaan as Kenneth Nichols

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DeHaan is probably best known for his roles in films like Kill Your Darlings, A Cure for Wellness, as Harry Osborn/Green Goblin in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and as the titular character in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.

Kenneth Nichols was an officer in the United States Army as well as a civil engineer who worked on the Manhattan Project.

18. Matthew Modine as Vannevar Bush:

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Modine is most renowned for his lead role in Stanley Kubrick’s classic Full Metal Jacket. However, many of you will probably recognize Modine from his more recent role as the sinister Dr. Martin Brenner, aka "Papa," in Stranger Things.

Vannevar Bush was the director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, which was newly formed at the time of events in the film.

19. Jason Clarke as Roger Robb:

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You probably know Clarke best for his leading roles in a number of high-profile films like Zero Dark Thirty, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Terminator Genisys, and many more.

Roger Robb was a United States circuit judge who served as special counsel to an Atomic Energy Commission hearing involving Oppenheimer.

20. Rami Malek as David Hill:

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Malek, who most recently starred in Amsterdam, broke out with his role as Elliot Anderson in the TV series Mr. Robot (for which he won an Emmy), and, of course, for his Oscar-winning role as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody, making him the first actor of Egyptian heritage to win an Oscar for Best Actor.

David Hill was an associate experimental physicist at the University of Chicago’s Metallurgical Laboratory during the Manhattan Project. 

21. James D'Arcy as Patrick Blackett:

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D'Arcy, well known for his role as Howard Stark's butler, Edwin Jarvis in the MCU, worked with Christopher Nolan previously in the film Dunkirk.

Patrick Blackett was a British experimental physicist and Nobel Prize Winner who was Oppenheimer's tutor at Cambridge University.

22. Kenneth Branagh as Niels Bohr:

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Branagh is an accomplished actor and filmmaker who has been nominated for eight Oscars — in many categories including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and Best Supporting Actor — and won Best Original Screenplay for the highly acclaimed Belfast. This film marks the third time Branagh and Nolan will be working together, having worked on Dunkirk and Tenet as well.

Niels Bohr was a Danish physicist and winner of the Nobel Prize who was revered by Oppenheimer and other scientists of his generation for his study of atomic structure and the famed “Copenhagen Interpretation” of quantum mechanics.

23. Finally, Tom Conti as Albert Einstein:

Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures, Fred Stein Archive / Via Getty Images

Conti, whose career spans 60 years on stage and screen, was nominated for an Oscar for his work in the film Reuben, Reuben. 

Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist best known for developing the theory of relativity and making major contributions to quantum mechanics. 

Note: certain characters were intentionally left off the list because there were either no (legal) images of the actors in character and/or images of the historical figure available.

Some of these include characters like Boris Pash, William Borden, and Harry Truman.

Oppenheimer is in theaters NOW and you can watch the official trailer for it here:

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