Cillian Murphy of Oppenheimer Expresses Interest in Portraying 'Ken' Doll in 'Barbie 2': Let's Discuss

Cillian Murphy feels that he is “Kenough” to jump into Ken’s shoes if a Barbie 2 is ever made! The Oppenheimer actor recently weighed in on the possibility during a video interview, admitting that he’s fully on board to portray the character in the future. 

“Would I play a Ken in Barbie 2?” Cillian, 47, said while stifling a laugh in the now-viral clip that was posted on Tuesday, July 18. “Sure. Yeah! Let’s read the script, let’s have a conversation.”

Though a sequel to Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie’s Barbie has not yet been confirmed, audiences around the world are buzzing about the comedy, including Cillian himself. 

“I can’t wait to see the movie,” Cillian noted. “I think it’s great for cinema. You’ve got all these great movies happening this summer.”

Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer both premiered on July 21, spurring the viral moviegoer trend called “Barbenheimer,” which encouraged audiences to buy tickets and watch both films. Social media became a firestorm with the trending hashtag that weekend, with many users sharing photos of the outfits they’d wear to both premieres. Since the productions’ plots are vastly different from each other, a majority of Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok users took the opportunity to post side-by-side images of how strikingly different their outfits would look when going to both premieres. Most of the colors that were seen included pink “Barbiecore” for Barbie outfits and black or darker colored looks for Oppenheimer. 

Both films were successful at the box office, with Barbie garnering $162 million and Oppenheimer earning more than $80 million during the opening weekend. The productions were also met with praise from audiences and critics alike. 

The cast of Oppenheimer had embarked on their press tour weeks before the film’s premiere but chose to walk out of their London screening on July 13 to honor the joint SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike. However, Cillian was able to share some of his opinions before the walkout occurred. 

Previously, Cillian opened up about the romantic scenes he and his costar Florence Pugh had to film for Oppenheimer, which focuses on the Manhattan Project in the 1940s run by physicist Robert Oppenheimer. In three separate scenes, both Florence, 27, and Cillian had to appear on camera without clothes on. 

While speaking with The Sydney Morning Herald shortly before the movie’s release date, Cillian defended the vulnerable moments between his and Florence’s characters, Robert and Jean, respectively. 

“Those scenes were written deliberately,” he explained. “[Director Christopher] knew that those scenes would get the movie the rating that it got. And I think when you see it, it’s so f—king powerful. And they’re not gratuitous. They’re perfect. And Florence is just amazing.”