Description
This paper explores the transformative potential of the 2023 film Oppenheimer to serve as a catalyst for both illuminating and challenging prevailing narratives surrounding our perceptions of nuclear history. Responding to the question, ‘Who do we do our international studies work for, and with?’ we build on the argument that popular entertainment about nuclear weapons has serious and immediate implications for contemporary nuclear policy. Through a three-stage analysis, we delve into the deliberate accomplishments of the film, positioning it strategically in the evolving timeline of our understanding of nuclear narratives. We argue for the importance of simultaneously engaging with Oppenheimer as a source material by reflecting on its present relevance, and its potential to inform and even reframe how we (can) engage with cultivated nuclear discourses in the future. Oppenheimer contributes to an ongoing mythologizing of the bomb in connection to the myth of the man, J. Robert Oppenheimer. With a specific emphasis on concepts such as grievable life and knowledge creation we contribute to a nuanced dialogue on nuclear narratives and popular culture. We invite scholars to join us in exploring Oppenheimer not only as a film but as a thought-provoking lens through which we can re-evaluate the past, engage with the present, and anticipate the future in the realm of nuclear discourse.
