Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer finally set for release in Japan

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer will finally get a theatrical release in Japan in 2024.

The exact release date has not been revealed as of now, but local distributor Bitters End said in a statement on Thursday that the decision to release the movie was made “following months of thoughtful dialogue associated with the subject matter and acknowledging the particular sensitivity for us Japanese”.

The blockbuster follows the life of theoretical physicist J Robert Oppenheimer who developed the first nuclear bomb for the top-secret Manhattan Project. The film depicts the 1945 nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki which killed around 200,000 people.

The global rollout of Oppenheimer started in July this year. However, concerns lingered about its screening in Japan due to sensitivities surrounding the subject matter.

The film does not explicitly show the bombings. Nolan previously said that he did not depict the aftermath or the victims of the bombings in the film because he felt that “to depart from Oppenheimer’s experience would betray the terms of the storytelling”.

He added: “He learned about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the radio – the same as the rest of the world.” In an interview with MSNBC, the filmmaker stated: “That, to me, was a shock. … Everything is his experience or my interpretation of his experience. Because as I keep reminding everyone, it’s not a documentary. It is an interpretation. That’s my job.”

The decision to release the film in Japan comes in response to criticism that the film’s marketing had trivialised the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The film was released at the same time as Greta Gerwig’s Barbie in July.

Online references linking Barbie and Oppenheimer sparked outrage in Japan, particularly due to the historical sensitivity surrounding the country’s experience with two nuclear attacks during World War II.

Social media users criticised the creation of “Barbenheimer” memes, merging Greta Gerwig’s comedy with Oppenheimer’s biopic.

In fact, during the summer after the global release of Oppenheimer, the hashtag #NoBarbenheimer gained popularity in Japan as numerous X/Twitter users expressed their concern over fan-generated online memes and imagery, which they believed trivialised nuclear weapons and undermined the gravity of the devastating fallout caused by the bombs.

Japan’s X/Twitter account for the Barbie film responded to the memes: “Because the movies Barbie and Oppenheimer were both released in the US on 21 July, there is currently a movement driven by overseas fans to watch them together (#Barbenheimer), but this is not an official movement.

“We find the reaction to this fan-driven movement from the official US account for the movie Barbie to be extremely regrettable. We take this very seriously and are asking the US head office to take appropriate action. We apologise to those offended by these inconsiderate actions.”

Warner Bros responded by issuing a statement which said it “regrets its recent insensitive social media engagement. The studio offers a sincere apology”.

In the statement released on Thursday morning in Tokyo, Bitters End said: “We feel Christopher Nolan has created a singular cinematic experience that transcends traditional storytelling and must be seen on the big screen. We invite the audience to watch the film with their own eyes when it comes to Japan”.

Oppenheimer has faced criticism for not addressing the over 200,000 casualties resulting from Oppenheimer’s creation of the atomic bomb. Some argue that the film lacks sufficient emphasis on the devastating impact of Oppenheimer’s actions.

Nina Wallace, media and outreach manager at Densho, a nonprofit group dedicated to preserving the stories of those of Japanese descent told NBC earlier this year: “I don’t think we should depend on Hollywood to tell our stories with the nuance and the depth and the care that they really deserve.”

She continued: “But it is true that these institutions that are in positions of power, positions of influence, put more value on stories of men like Oppenheimer, like Truman, than it does on the Asian and indigenous communities that suffered because of decisions that those men made.”

Oppenheimer went on to make more than $950m worldwide since its release in July.