Russell Crowe Is Unrecognizable in First Look at ‘Nuremberg’

On the same day The Amazing Spider-Man 2 returns to theaters, the second directorial outing of one of its writers just got an exciting new update. A new report from Deadline unveiled several exclusive first-look images of Russell Crowe and Rami Malek in Nuremberg, the upcoming Nazi thriller from director James Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt has served as a producer on iconic horror movies and thrillers such as Scream and Zodiac and also wrote the screenplay for both of Netflix’s Murder Mystery films starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. He made his directorial debut with Truth, starring Cate Blanchett and Robert Redford, and Nuremberg will be his first follow-up to the 2015 political drama.

Nuremberg is based on The Nazi and the Psychiatrist by author Jack El-Hai, which tells the story of Lt. Colonel Douglas Kelley, a U.S. military psychiatrist on board a plane with several high-ranking Nazi officials who had been taken captive. Kelley was the first Allied psychiatrist to evaluate infamous Nazi leaders, and while plenty of World War 2 movies have examined different parts of the conflict, Nuremberg will be the first adaptation to tell the story through Kelley’s eyes. Crowe will play one of the captive Nazis, Herman Göring, and Malek will play psychiatrist Kelley.

What Happened at the Nuremberg Trials?

The Nuremberg trials were a double-edged sword; while they did successfully shine a light on all the heinous atrocities committed by the Nazis during WW2, they also convinced people that there was no longer anything to worry about — which was not the case. Director Vanderbilt, who is also penning the screenplay for Nuremberg, spoke about what drew him to the film:

“I learned about the Nuremberg trials in school, so I knew the basic facts. But as soon as I read about the relationship between these two men (Göring and Kelley), I was really attracted to the idea of telling a personal story between them and how they collided at this crossroads of history.”

Both stars, Crowe and Malek, also talked about what sparked their interest in the film, highlighting the script as what drew them to the project:

CROWE: “For the most part, the things that attract me are the things that terrify me, I responded to the script straight away, but in a funny way I was also emotionally exhausted by it. How would you even attempt to play that guy? When that kind of question comes up, that’s usually what I’m attracted to.”

MALEK: “It was one of those rare scripts where you don’t want to touch a single beat; there’s not one word out of place. James has got such a good sense of rhythm and pacing, and you feel there’s a motor to the script — some driving force behind it — and it propels you from scene to scene.”

Other notable names attached to star in Nuremberg are Michael Shannon, Richard E. Grant, John Slattery, Colin Hanks, Leo Woodall, and Lydia Peckham. With obvious passion bleeding through from everyone behind the camera and in front of it, Vanderbilt has a chance to accomplish something special with his second directorial feature.

Nuremberg is in the midst of production but does not yet have an official release date. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates, and check out Malek in Oppenheimer, which is now streaming on Peacock.

Oppenheimer

R

910

The story of American scientist, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

Director

Christopher Nolan

Cast

Cillian Murphy , Matt Damon , Robert Downey Jr. , Emily Blunt , Alden Ehrenreich , Scott Grimes , Jason Clarke , Tony Goldwyn

Runtime

180 minutes

Main Genre

Biography

Writers

Kai Bird , Christopher Nolan , Martin J. Sherwin

WATCH ON PEACOCK