Everything We Know About Christopher Nolan’s Next Movie So Far

Christopher Nolan is back working with the studio that finally earned him a Best Director Oscar. He teams up with Universal to bring out his new movie on July 17, 2026. Reports suggest that the film will go into production early next year. Nolan is also reportedly collaborating with Matt Damon for the third time, who may lead an ensemble cast in this film.

The title, plot, and even the genre of the film are kept under tight wraps and fans can only speculate what Nolan’s new venture is going to be. Nolan and Universal will look to repeat their Oppenheimer success, both at the box office and during the awards season, for this film.

What is Christopher Nolan’s Next Movie About?

The details of Christopher Nolan‘s next film are tightly under wraps although speculations have begun to pop up on the internet. One popular theory was that the film is a reimagination of the ’60s British TV show The Prisoner. Nolan was working on the film at one point in his career, even sharing about it during a Q&A session with IGN Film Force in 2006. He shared (via Rotten Tomatoes):

The Prisoner is something I’ve been interested in for quite a long time and I think I’ve figured out the take on how we’d approach it. The relevance of it today. David and Janet Peoples are terrific, who you know wrote Blade Runner and Tweleve Monkeys.

The Prisoner is a spy thriller, a genre that the director has been interested in for far too long. However, reports have now seemingly confirmed that Nolan is working on an original story and not a remake (via The Hollywood Reporter).

It was also rumored that he would take up his Howard Hughes biopic, especially after he commented during a Variety interview last year that he had a half-finished script. Back in the day, Nolan had plans for the movie until Martin Scorsese released his film The Aviator based on the American businessman. It was expected that Jim Carrey would play the lead.

Nolan was also briefly attached to an adaptation of Ruth Rendell’s The Keys to the Street, which never got made. The THR report also seemingly puts an end to the rumors that he is making a franchise movie like a new James Bond reboot or Jason Bourne 6. However, he is open to any genre of films, as he explained to Variety:

Ideas come from everywhere. I’ve done a remake, I’ve made adaptations from comic books and novels, and I’ve written original screenplays. I’m open to anything. But as a writer and director, whatever I do, I have to feel like I own it completely. I have to make it original to me: The initial seed of an idea may come from elsewhere, but it has to go through my fingers on a keyboard and come out through my eyes alone.

Considering the director’s mainstream appeal and his current Oscar status, any genre he tackles is sure to generate excitement among his fans. The suspense element surrounding its details pulls the audience even more to the new film.

Will Matt Damon star in Christopher Nolan’s Next Movie?

According to THR, Matt Damon is in talks to star in Christopher Nolan’s next film. It will be the Good Will Hunting actor’s third collaboration with Nolan after Interstellar and Oppenheimer. Interestingly, Nolan’s latest Oscar-winning film brought back Damon from an acting break.

Damon earlier revealed to EW that he had made a deal with his wife in couples counseling to take a hiatus from acting. However, he placed the caveat that he would return to a role if Nolan called him for a film. Nolan approached him with the role of Leslie Groves and he immediately jumped at the chance. He shared with EW:

I had negotiated extensively with my wife that I was taking time off. I had been in Interstellar, and then Chris put me on ice for a couple of movies, so I wasn’t in the rotation, but I actually negotiated in couples therapy the one caveat to my taking time off was if Chris Nolan called. This is without knowing whether or not he was working on anything, because he never tells you. He just calls you out of the blue. And so, it was a moment in my household.

While his roles in both Interstellar and Oppenheimer were well-received, Damon had less screen space compared to his co-stars. The new film is expected to give him a major role as he is one of the first reported casting choices in the film.

With this third collaboration with Nolan, Damon will also enter the ranks of actors who have worked on three or more films with the Inception director. These actors include Morgan Freeman (3 films), Jeremy Theobald (3), Kenneth Branagh (3), Tom Hardy (3), Gary Oldman (4), Christian Bale (4), Cillian Murphy (6), and Michael Caine (8).

Why Is Christopher Nolan’s Return To Universal Both Exciting And Concerning?

Christopher Nolan was one of Warner Bros.’s crown jewels before the two had a very public fallout. The theatrical strategy for Tenet during the pandemic forced Nolan to call out the former WB regime publicly. Nolan took Oppenheimer to Universal who pulled out all the tricks in their books to make a three-hour physics & historical drama into the best film last year.

Warner Bros. wanted to make amends as co-CEO Michael De Luca told Variety last year, “We’re hoping to get Nolan back. I think there’s a world.” However, Puck’s Matt Belloni reported that Nolan only took his new script to Universal’s Donna Langley. The new film’s announcement also comes a week after one of WB’s biggest disasters in recent years, Joker: Folie à Deux.

While the new collaboration sure seems to add insult to WB’s injury, it is all not exciting news for Nolan fans. The film is being released among Universal’s 2026 roster, which includes some Oscar-worthy films. Universal puts all their efforts into Oppenheimer‘s Oscar campaign earlier this year.

However, when it comes to the Oscar campaign in 2027, Universal will probably be promoting at least four films. These include Nolan’s film, Steven Spielberg‘s film, Everything Everywhere All at Once directing duo Daniels’ film, and Jordan Peele’s film. It presents a major challenge to Nolan’s new film during the awards season.

Christopher Nolan Is Likely To Experiment Big With His Next Film

There is a popular perception that Christopher Nolan might be under a lot of pressure after Oppenheimer‘s success. However, from his previous pattern of films, he is likely to become more confident after his Oscar win and go big with an experimental film.

After his monumental success in 2008 with The Dark Knight, Nolan went on to make his passion project Inception. It was an extremely experimental sci-fi concept from the director. Similarly, Dunkirk was a commercial success and won many accolades during the awards season. Nolan followed it with another experimental attempt, Tenet, which didn’t resonate that well with his fans.

The placement of Inception and Tenet in Nolan’s career is proof that he will probably experiment with his next film. Fans will have to wait for more exciting updates about the film.