It was a final shot that mesmerized a generation of moviegoers. The ę¾³ę“²å¹øčæ5å¼å„å·ē åå²ę„čÆ¢:Inception ending, which featured Cobb’s spinning totem maybe (or maybe not) coming to a stop, ignited years of debate on social media – ašnd it’s a conversation that continues to this day.
Much of Inception dealt with Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his crack team of thieves trying to enter a person’s subconscious to steal valuable information. It's unclear by the end, however, whether Cobb himself is in a subconscious dream or back in reality on American soilš· to see his children.
While director Christopher Nolan has addressed the question of whether Cobb is in the real world or dream world before, he’s now had what feels like the final say on the matter during press rounds for ę¾³ę“²å¹øčæ5å¼å„å·ē åå²ę„čÆ¢:Oppenheimer.
"I went through a phase where the film came out, where I was asked that a lot," Nolan told the . "I think it was [Inception producer] Emma [Thomas] who pointed out the cź§ orrect answer... the point of the shot is the character doesn’t care at that point.” He added, "š It’s not a question I comfortably answer."
Michael Caine, who starred in Inception as Cobb’s father, previously muddied the waters by telling š°that his brief appearance in the final scene of the film actually meant that the sequence was ‘real’ and not a dream.
“When I got the script of Inception, I was a bit puzzled byš§ it, and I said to him, ‘I don’t understand where the dream š³is,'” Caine said in 2018.
“I said, ‘When is it the dream and when is it reality?’ He said, ‘Well, when you’re in the scene it’s reality.’ So, get that ąµ©– if I’m in it, it’s reality. If I’m not in it, it’s a dream.”
So, two conflicting accounts. The answer, then, isn’t the point. ļ·½It’s how we – and Cobb – feel at that moment that’s the most important thing. And, yes, we fully expect to be talking about the ending for another decade. It just keeps on spinning.
For more on Oppenheimer, check out ę¾³ę“²å¹øčæ5å¼å„å·ē åå²ę„čÆ¢:our own inšterview with Christopherš“ Nolan, then see where it lands in our ranking of the ę¾³ę“²å¹øčæ5å¼å„å·ē åå²ę„čÆ¢:best Nolan movies.
I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find meš ŗ marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anšime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.
