The Only Movies Christopher Nolan Dropped Out of Directing
When a director attaches themselves to a movie, it’s no guarantee the project will actually be made. Christopher Nolan, however, usually sees his productions through to completion. In contrast, Guillermo del Toro has spent years developing films that never progressed beyond the planning stage, sometimes losing over a decade to projects that never materialized.
Since becoming a major industry figure—a knighted Oscar winner—Nolan has had the freedom to pursue his own vision. This makes it highly unlikely he’ll ever be attached to a film that never gets made. The only two times this happened were before he delivered The Dark Knight, his first billion-dollar blockbuster.
One notable case often mentioned is the Howard Hughes biopic. Nolan was deeply disappointed when his version was shelved after Martin Scorsese began filming his own. The project could have been a career-defining role for Jim Carrey, but Nolan didn’t technically drop out—the entire production was abandoned due to external factors.
The only confirmed instance where Nolan did step away from directing was for The Prisoner, his proposed adaptation of the classic 1960s series.
Nolan was crushed when his version of the story was mothballed after Martin Scorsese got his in front of the cameras first, and it stood every chance of being a career-defining performance for Jim Carrey.
He did for The Prisoner, though, his mooted adaptation of the classic 1960s series.
Author’s Summary
Christopher Nolan has rarely abandoned projects, with only two notable exceptions before his rise to blockbuster fame, one being his adaptation of The Prisoner.