Cillian Murphy responded to his Oppenheimer costar Matt Damon teasing him for skipping out on social dinners with the cast while working on the film.
Murphy played the titular role in Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer and recently won the Golden Globe and BAFTA awards for his work on the critically acclaimed film.
The epic drama is based on the 2005 biography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin chronicling the life of American theoretical physicist, J. Robert Oppenheimer, who is most famous for helping to develop the atomic bomb.
The star-studded cast includes Matt Damon, who plays Colonel Leslie Groves, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) officer who recruited Oppenheimer as director of the Manhattan Project's Los Alamos Laboratory where the atomic bomb was developed.
During an interview with the Irish actor, 60 Minutes host Scott Pelley quoted Damon as saying Murphy was the "worst dinner companion imaginable."
But Pelley assured that the comment was not made out of spite.
“What he meant by that was when you’re working on a film, when you’re being the character, there’s very little room in your head for anything else."
Murphy agreed and chuckled at the ribbing by Damon and admitted:
"I’ve always been like that, I think.”
The 47-year-old expounded on his approach to working on set, adding:
“It’s because, to me, you have the time on set, which is a short enough time. You have 10 hours, maybe."
"And then the other part, if you’ve got a significant part, you’re having to keep your lines fresh."
You can watch the segment here.
Murphy also shared something that was a crucial part of his Hollywood modus operandi.
"The other big thing for me is sleeping," he said, adding, "I love sleeping, and I need sleep."
Since Oppenheimer wrapped production, Murphy said he's had "lots of lovely dinners with Matt Damon" as they've been promoting the film.
Murphy reiterated that his top priority was to be rested as much as possible.
He added:
“At the time, yeah, you just don’t have the room in your head, and you want as much sleep as possible.”
Fans gave props to Murphy for his commitment to the film.
Users also found the actor relatable.
Last July, Damon and Emily Blunt, who portrayed Oppenheimer's wife Katherine "Kitty" Oppenheimer, sat for an interview with ET and mentioned Murphy's tendency to decline dinner invitations during production to maintain his diet for the integrity of his role.
Damon noted:
"We invited Cillian to dinner every night and he never went."
"He was just losing so much weight for the part that he just didn't eat dinner."
In a separate interview with People, Blunt marveled at Murphy's dedication.
“The sheer volume of what [Murphy] had to take on [for the role] and shoulder is so monumental."
"Of course, he didn’t want to come and have dinner with us.”
Cillian, we would gladly accept grabbing a bite with Damon and Blunt any time on your behalf.
