The teaser trailer for Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” released last year, contained a predictably scant amount of information—a teary-eyed Matthew McConaughey and elegant title design is about all we got—and one couldn’t tell if it was secrecy or simply lack of footage that prompted that result. Thanks to McConaughey’s unstoppable acting streak and the attention paid to it though, we’ve got some new info that suggests Nolan has forged ahead with an even quicker pace than expected.
Talking with Variety (via Hypable) in an informative and reflective piece on his career, McConaughey called the upcoming film “[T]he most ambitious thing [Nolan’s] ever done,” and also described his time on set. “There’s no fucking around on set. He’s a great problem solver. In that way, he’s very indie. Here’s a guy who could have whatever budget he wants — and we finished shooting early.”
Certainly a major feat considering the director was using both anamorphic 35mm and IMAX formats in a variety of locations including Alberta, Canada, Los Angeles, and Iceland. That’s combined with wrangling all-star cast—Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, and Matt Damon, to name a few—but the “Dallas Buyers Club” actor revealed that Nolan perhaps had him in mind early on, as the director first circled the actor two years ago.
Later, the pair picked things up again when the actor flew to Los Angeles to meet with Nolan. “He came up to me and said, ‘Mud. I love that movie.’ I sat down with him for about 2½ hours at his house,” McConaughey explained. “Not one word came up about ‘Interstellar.’ I walked out not sure what to think. I mean, he’s not a guy who takes general meetings.”
Meanwhile, for the Variety piece, Nolan described exactly what in McConaughey he loves: “He approaches a character from a deep human understanding, refusing to take shortcuts to an emotional connection with the audience — all while never losing sight of the demands of the overall narrative.” And for a fun depiction of Nolan’s other narrative demands, check out an 8-bit rendering of “Inception” by the folks over at Cinefix. Watch below.