{"id":2306679,"date":"2026-03-01T16:25:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T16:25:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2306679"},"modified":"2026-03-01T16:25:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T16:25:09","slug":"films-should-not-be-preachy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/films-should-not-be-preachy\/","title":{"rendered":"Films should not be preachy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Cillian Murphy has said that films should not be preachy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Oscar-winning actor, 49, said movies should be provocative and ask questions but \u201cshould never tell you how to feel\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">His latest film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, involves Nazis teaming up with gangsters to try to crash the British economy during the Second World War.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In an interview with The Times, the Irish actor was asked about the film being released in an era when some political commentators on social media are openly supportive of Nazis.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Cillian Murphy (right) played J Robert Oppenheimer and won an Academy Award for Best Actor &#8211; Melinda Sue Gordon\/Universal Pictures<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThat\u2019s profoundly upsetting,\u201d he said. \u201cBut then this film wears that lightly \u2013 it\u2019s not <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/films\/0\/zone-of-interest-review-jonathan-glazer-cannes-2023\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Zone of Interest;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">The Zone of Interest<\/a>, let\u2019s put it that way.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cAnd, look, the last thing I want to be involved in is preachy or dogmatic work because films should never tell you how to feel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThey should just ask questions. This should be an entertaining action film with a big heart, but if you want to look closer it could be provocative too. The best mainstream entertainment operates simultaneously on those levels.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Murphy said that <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/films\/2023\/07\/23\/oppenheimer-review-christopher-nolan-cillian-murphy\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Oppenheimer;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">Oppenheimer<\/a>, the 2023 biopic of J Robert Oppenheimer, the physicist, which earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor, was an example of a film that was both entertaining and provocative.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">He said: \u201cIf you want to talk about where we are in the world and look at how close we are to nuclear f&#8212;ing Armageddon, you can think about Oppenheimer in that way, but if you just want to look at a great film with big explosions then that\u2019s cool as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Murphy played Birmingham gangster Tommy Shelby in the Peaky Blinders TV series from 2013 to 2022\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"602\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/Hy5XapuLnvMjcyhvZS8.Pg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYwMjtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/the_telegraph_258\/1ba0184179170f94f5dab0bff60d7d61\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-0 size-full\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-3 right-3 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed bottom-0 left-0 right-0 top-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Murphy played Birmingham gangster Tommy Shelby in the Peaky Blinders TV series from 2013 to 2022 &#8211; Robert Viglasky\/Caryn Mandbach Productions<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Peaky Blinders film is a continuation of the <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/tv\/0\/steven-knight-interview-a-thousand-blows-peaky-blinders\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:critically acclaimed television series;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\">critically acclaimed television series<\/a>, in which Murphy played gang leader Tommy Shelby in interwar Birmingham. The show ran for six series from 2013-2022.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI was 35 when we started and 48 when we made the film,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI\u2019ve played Tommy for over a quarter of my life, moving from being a youngish man right into the teeth of middle age. It\u2019s incredibly rewarding seeing everybody around you get older.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Murphy also dismissed rumours that he will take on the role of Voldemort in the<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/business\/2026\/02\/09\/uk-hbo-max-streaming-bets-harry-potter-subscribers\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:upcoming Harry Potter television series.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\"> upcoming Harry Potter television series.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI\u2019m categorically not,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/customer\/subscription\/store\/us\/?ICID=yahoo_article\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><b>Try full access to The Telegraph free today. Unlock their award-winning website and essential news app, plus useful tools and expert guides for your money, health and holidays.<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cillian Murphy has said that films should not be preachy. The Oscar-winning actor, 49, said movies should be provocative and ask questions but \u201cshould never tell you how to feel\u201d. His latest film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, involves Nazis teaming up with gangsters to try to crash the British economy during the Second World [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2306680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[415615,40640,446793,318038,385591],"class_list":["post-2306679","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-academy-award-for-best-actor","tag-cillian-murphy","tag-j-robert-oppenheimer","tag-peaky-blinders","tag-tommy-shelby"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Films-should-not-be-preachy.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2306679","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2306679"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2306679\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2306681,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2306679\/revisions\/2306681"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2306680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2306679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2306679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2306679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}