Oppenheimer fans notice a mistake in new Christopher Nolan movie

Oppenheimer fans notice a mistake in the background of the new Christopher Nolan movie

Eagle-eyed Oppenheimer fans have noticed a mistake in the background of the new Christopher Nolan movie.

The film, which tells the story of theoretical scientist J Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb, features an apparent blunder noticed by viewers shortly after its release on Friday. 

The movie is told using a mixture of three timelines; firstly scenes of Oppenheimer’s early life and his work on the A-bomb, then scenes set during his 1954 security hearing and finally the US Senate confirmation of Lewis Strauss in 1959. 

One fan spotted the blunder in a scene set during 1945 as they realised there was something amiss with the US flag. 

It comes at the moment in the film after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki when Oppenheimer, played by Cillian Murphy, is asked to deliver a speech to a cheering crowd who are waving US flags. 

Eagle-eyed: Oppenheimer fans have noticed a mistake in the background of the new Christopher Nolan movie; the flags had 50 stars, when in 1945 the US flag only had 48

Cinematic great: One fan spotted the blunder in a scene set during 1945 as they realised there was something amiss with the US flag (Florence Pugh and Cillian Murphy pictured)

However, one eagle-eyed fan noticed the flags had 50 stars, when in 1945 the US flag only had 48. 

The fan wrote on Twitter: ‘It was good and all, but I’ll be that guy and complain they used 50-star flags in a scene set in 1945.’

Elsewhere in the film, production seemed to use the correct period-accurate flags and another fan has suggested the mistake was actually deliberate and was meant to subtly convey Oppenheimer’s subjective recollections.

The fan commented: ‘Personally I think it was done intentionally because coloured scenes were from Oppenheimer’s perspective which is his present day’s memory that was after the 50-star flag was established.’ 

The weekend, which has been coined ‘Barbenheimer’ after the release of both Barbie and Oppenheimer at the same time, has raked in almost £30 million at the UK box office. 

UK cinema Vue has hailed it as the ‘biggest movie weekend’ since the Avengers: Endgame hit screens in 2019 after millions of fans flocked to cinemas for monster five-hour film marathon.

The company, which has 91 cinemas in Britain, said a fifth of its customers had bought tickets to see both films.

It seems a crossover could be on the cards as Cillian Murphy has revealed he would play Ken in a Barbie sequel. 

Film fanatics: The film tells the story of theoretical scientist J Robert Oppenheimer (pictured) and his role in the development of the atomic bomb

In an interview with Cinefilos he was asked if he would consider the role of Ken if the chance for a Barbie sequel arose. 

‘Hey, you know, sure. Yeah, let’s read the script. Let’s have a conversation,’ Murphy said in the interview.

Murphy admitted he had not yet seen the Barbie movie, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, but he was looking forward to it.

‘I can’t wait to see the movie. I think it’s great for cinema. You know, we’ve got all these great movies happening this summer,’ Murphy said.

While Warner Bros. has not officially announced a sequel yet, based on its record-breaking opening weekend, it seems all but inevitable.

Barbie took in $162 million in its opening weekend to top the box office, with Oppenheimer in second with $82.5 million, a historic one-two punch.

Talented cast: (L-R) Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy and Florence Pugh at the Oppenheimer premiere in London earlier this month