‘Oppenheimer’ To Get Theatrical Release in Japan

Indie distributor Bitters End has confirmed the theatrical release of Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” in Japan. The distributor announced that the movie will hit theatres in Japan next year but has not mentioned a specific release date.

In a statement, Bitters End said,
“We, Bitters End, will release Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ in Japan in 2024. The decision was made following months of thoughtful dialogue associated with the subject matter and acknowledging the particular sensitivity for us Japanese. After screening the film, we feel Christopher Nolan has created a singular cinematic experience that transcends traditional storytelling and must be seen on the big screen. We invite the audience to watch the film with their own eyes when it comes to Japan.”

The 2023 epic biographical thriller is controversial in the ‘land of the rising sun’ as the two atomic bombs detonated in 1945, which led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Japanese citizens.

Variety reported that although the movie was released in most nations in July 2023 by Universal and collected over $950 million worldwide, Toho-Towa, which operates most universal titles in Japan, decided against it.

The movie’s director, Christopher Nolan, has defended his decision not to specifically portray the bombings and Japanese casualties, claiming that his film is presented subjectively from Oppenheimer’s point of view and that the physicist never saw the carnage he helped cause. The British-American director and film producer told NBC,

“He (physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer) learned about the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the radio — the same as the rest of the world.”

Earlier, Bitters End released Joe Wright’s Churchill biopic ‘Darkest Hour’ and Paul Thomas Anderson’s ’70s dramedy ‘Licorice Pizza’ in Japan. The distributor was also in charge of the Korean Oscar winner ‘Parasite’ and will be releasing Japan’s current Oscar contender ‘Perfect Days’ on December 22, 2023.