Cillian Murphy has defended his steamy sex scenes with Florence Pugh in the film Oppenheimer.
The Irish actor stars as scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer in the Christopher Nolan directed flick, and Florence stars as his mistress Jean Tatlock.
In one controversial scene, Jean asks J. Robert about his book collection while they are having sex, and he reads a quote from the Hindu holy text the Bhagavad-Gita to her.
In another scene, the pair have sex in the courtroom while Oppenheimer’s wife Kitty (played by Emily Blunt) watches on.
In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Cillian said: “[Christopher Nolan] knew that those scenes would get the movie the rating that it got.”
“And I think when you see it, it’s so f**king powerful. And they’re not gratuitous. They’re perfect. And Florence is just amazing.”
Gushing over his co-star Florence, the Peaky Blinders star added: “I have loved Florence’s work since Lady Macbeth and I think she’s f**king phenomenal. She has this presence as a person and on screen that is staggering. The impact she has [in Oppenheimer] for the size of the role, it’s quite devastating.”
In an interview with Insider earlier this month, director Christopher explained that showing Oppenheimer’s sex life seemed essential to the story.
He said: “When you look at Oppenheimer’s life and you look at his story, that aspect of his life, the aspect of his sexuality, his way with women, the charm that he exuded, it’s an essential part of his story.”
