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writers-blogck · 1 year

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A Favor Called ( Dream of the Endless/Morpheus x Reader )

Warning(s): This will go into religion and the ideas of Christianity. Some information may be incorrect as I myself am not a practicing Christian. This should be expected when it comes to the Sandman, or really most Niel Gaiman pieces. Disrespect is not meant but here is a warning for those who may be sensitive to that topic. This will also use the information given in the comics. No big spoilers save for including all of the Endless. There will also be original characters, including the Lower Seven Endless. They will show up later in the story. Reader is Female. Song: Enter Sandman by Metallica

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Title: A Favor Called Description: A century goes by but Morpheus gets out. What is waiting for him on the outside? Pairing: Dream of the Endless [ Morpheus ] x Reader Fandom: The Sandman ( Comics and Netflix Series ) Word Count: 5,358

Previous Chapter: None. Next Chapter: The Pouch Opened Story Index

Dream was locked in a glass orb, laid out like a marble statue. His eyes were narrowed as his arm laid to cover the lower half of his face. To the guards, the man didn't breathe or blink. He didn't eat, he didn't need to do anything. Roderick said he wasn't Death but then...What was he? A devil? Demon? He kept the truth from the basic guards, they needn't know. They instead were left to wonder.

"He's right scary, he is." The rat-like guard spoke, long and thin nose wrinkling up as if he smelled something rotten. Dream never remembered their names. He just identified them based on their appearance. They never stood out. All the same deep in their core. Terrible. Rotten.

"How does he stay so fit when he's trapped in there all the time?" This one was tubbier and more stout in appearance. His nose was upturned and had fat covering his cheeks; he looked like a pig. Dream could only imagine what he would do to the two guards if he got loose. Those thoughts were a comfort on the harder days. Even though he was an immortal being, it didn't make it any easier to deal with the passing days.

"How does he survive without needing to eat? Or needing to use the loo? This man isn't normal, mate. He's a right demon, fuckin' monster. Sleep Paralysis Demon or somethin'. It's why we gotta drink the bean juice and take the pills. So he doesn't possess one of us when we go to sleep." The Rat swirled the black coffee in his mug before taking a swig.

"I think he's a Dracula. He's pale enough to be one. Ain't never tried to put him in sunlight before."

Dream pushed the duo's words out of his mind as he retreated into his thoughts. He knew he had been in here for over twenty years, at the very least. Keeping track of time when you were stuck in the same place day after day was nearly impossible. Rumors of a Second Great War filled the air and for a moment, he thought he might be able to use that to his advantage. But, no, Roderick still took every precaution when dealing with Dream.

Even though Dream wondered if his siblings would come for him, deep within him he knew that he would be ashamed if they did. He never needed their help. He was solitary. He was alone. He didn't need anyone. Yet, here he was, trapped. He just had to remind himself that he could play the long game. Humans die. He would not. If he just waited...

All he had to do was get through these years, which was easier said than done. His mind always would run back to his kingdom and his faithful servants. He would think of the Virtue of Hope who spent more time in his realm than her own. What was happening to them, to his kingdom? He had never been parted from his duties for this long since he was created. He just had to remind himself that he left it in good hands. Lucienne knew what she was doing and Hope was there to help. She had observed his duties so much, she would know what to do.

His thoughts often drifted back to the Virtue of Hope...When all you can do is think, it is hard not to regret past decisions, especially when you were Dream. She would come to his realm to hide and he always pushed her away. She never did anything but be kind to him and Dream would return said kindness with his usual bitterness.

The real question was, where did Hope hide now?

London, 2020

John Constantine owed the Devil a favor. That really was just as bad as it sounded. He had no idea what Lucifer would call him to do but he had been in such a desperate situation to save his sister that he had no other choice than to accept the fallen angel's help. Why did he always get himself in those situations? The ends that always were the last resort? It felt as though that was all he got recently. Nothing liked to go his way and it was quite tiring, to say the least.

Lucifer had gained some honor recently and that had John hoping that whatever the task was, it wouldn't go against his morals too severely. No murdering babies or robbing the elderly. Eh, Lucifer didn't do that type of thing anyway. That was just the Christians creating a monster to scare children. No, the real Devil was much more clever and even had his own rules he would abide by. Demons on the other hand...They had no qualms about hurting children. John tried to push the screaming girl from his mind but no matter what he did, he could never quiet her. A constant reminder of his failures.

He didn't have a clue about what he may be called to do, but he definitely wasn't expecting to see the charismatic man standing there with a young girl, who had to be no older than her early twenties, when he was eventually called. There was a look in her eyes, one of distance and foggy visions. Was she being controlled? His hands clenched in his pockets, mind racing at what he may have gotten himself into. Could he refuse Lucifer and walk out of here alive? He doubted that. Even still, he had boundaries that he didn't like to cross. He hoped that whatever the favor was, it had nothing to do with harming the girl.

The girl wasn't wearing a lot of clothing. Only a silk dress, which John assumed to be a slip, graced her form. Other than that small piece of fabric, her soft skin was on full display. Now John Constantine liked to think of himself as a gentleman in many aspects but even he couldn't help but take in the beauty of the woman standing before him. This was no natural beauty. He had been around enough nonhumans to sense when something was off.

"Hello, Constanteene."

"Constantine."

"Whatever, Constanteene, Constantine, Potato, Potaato- Just listen up, Conman. I need to call upon that favor I'm owed and this is a very important task. It would be to your benefit to do everything correctly from here on out. If you mess this up, I will not hesitate to create a personal hell for you that your worst nightmares couldn't possibly begin to dream up. Do you understand?"

"I have a feeling you'll create my own personal Hell no matter what I do when I end up kickin' that bucket."

"Jonathan, do you understand?"

"Right, I've just got here, mate. I've no bloody idea what's going on." Flicking open his lighter, he placed one of his cigarettes between his lips. He had a feeling that he was going to need one. He turned out to be right.

"What's going on, is that I require your services in becoming a sort of protector, guard, whatever you would like to call it. Either way, I'm calling in my favor, now."

"Guard her? And she is? Don't tell me she's gonna be a future sacrifice or somethin'."

"Listen well. She has many names, but from what I hear, she goes by (Y/N) as the primary title during this current time period. Some have called her Elpis. Others have called her Guan-Yin. Some even like to call her Pandora, though that isn't correct. She may have dealt with the woman but they are not one and the same." Lucifer slowly walked a circle around the still woman. If it wasn't for the slight rise and fall of her chest, John might have believed she was a very realistic statue. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.

"Excuse me? Mate, that didn't clear a thing up."

"If you would let me finish," The taller man's eyes flashed red before they softened back to their dusty blue as he looked at the girl, "She is a citizen of the Silver City. She is a Virtue, which is the opposite of a Sin. She is Hope."

Hope? Now John had heard a lot of strange things in his life but this was nearing the top. As he blew out a ring of smoke, he did admit to himself that she did seem like a holy being. He had met angels before. Some gave off a sense of fierce loyalty while others had the gracefulness of a swan, but all had an unparalleled beauty. This woman fit into that category just like the rest. Yet, John couldn't feel the same aura that came with Heavenly beings.

"So, an angel?"

"No, well yes, in a way, but high in the ranking. Angels are a rank of Celestial, the same as Archangels or Virtues. You, humans, like to call everything an Angel. Virtues are the highest in power as they can not be replaced. There are only seven in existence and each is just as unique as the other. Father didn't like making creations like that. He always allowed the opportunity for replacement but with the very nature of Virtues, due to them being created from their element, they can not be replaced."

"Right..."

The Devil shook his head, pushing his annoyance to the side. He was just being reminded of why he didn't work with John Constantine that much. He preferred John's twin sister, Johanna, but even he would admit that John was a better choice for this. Not only did he have a favor owed but the man was kinder than his elder sibling. He likes to play it up that he was doom and gloom all the time but Lucifer could easily see past that. Most could if they spent any time with him.

"Think of it like this. All holy beings aren't under the classification angels, though you humans seemed to use the term as a catch-all. Instead, angels are their own type. I, myself, was not an angel but an Archangel before I fell." He grimaced like there was a sour taste in his mouth, "Cherubs, Seraphim, the Powers. All different types of Celestial Beings. But yes, she is an angel if you have to consider it like that."

"Like a square is a rectangle but a rectangle isn't a square."

"What?"

"Nevermind. So, I just have to watch over her? She in danger or somethin'? I don't know how I could do anything more than she could."

"She has lost her powers. They were taken from her."

"Why did-"

"Demons, those that are loyal to me in any way, will offer her no danger. I've informed them that she is off-limits. But there are many things that would love to rid the world of a Virtue, especially Hope. With her loss of power, they may be successful in their attempts. I can not keep her safe without trapping her in my realm which I do not wish to do." Lucifer ran a gentle hand down the side of the girl's face, a look of soft care gracing his features, "She would not do well in Hell, even though I miss her dearly."

"Is she a past bird, then?"

"Oh, no. Nothing like that. No, Hope, she is my baby sister. I was her guardian, after all, Raphael could never truly replace me. Our bond is as strong as before, though I may not remember my time as Samael; what I do remember is the feelings I had for her, the sense of protection. I will not allow our family to ruin her as they did me. She does not deserve that."

"Wait, wait- You said she lost her powers? That means she's human?"

"Not human. Not fully anyway." Lucifer sighed, shaking his head. Constantine tried to ask another question but was interrupted by the other man before he could.

"Do you know this is the first time her feet have ever touched the ground?" This time, the Devil snapped his fingers, and a trench coat, golden in color, that was a near match to Constantine's, appeared in his arms. He draped it gently over his sister's shoulders with a sigh. Every move was filled with a gentleness that John had never seen from Lucifer before.

"Really?" Did that matter?

"Holy beings and the beliefs of purity. You know how it is...But, it is clear to me that she will not do well on Earth by herself. Not only from unnatural forces but from humans as well. I don't know how she will adapt. She will need your protection."

"And can I ask why she's going to Earth?"

"The same reason we all end up on Earth, punishment."

Lucifer stared at the girl with a look of pity in his eyes. It was easy to see that he truly cared for her. Had he gone soft? He hadn't been in her life for so long, why did he have to feel this way? The bond should have split as he fell, just as his wings burned away. It would have been much easier but then, who would you have in your corner when it came to family? It worried him, the times he saw just how alike the two of your situations were. Did your Father set you up just for failure? You didn't have the ego that Lucifer did, no armor against the world.

"So, I have to watch her for, what, a week? Three?"

"Until I say otherwise."

"Shite, how long until that then, mate?"

"Unknown. But what I do know is that this will not be easy. For you or for her."

Lucifer stood in front of the girl and buttoned up the jacket in both an attempt to keep the warmth in and the skin hidden. This was how a brother was supposed to treat his little sister, not what Michael had done. He wanted to rage against Heaven, knowing how they have turned their backs on her. She always did her job! Even the other Virtues allowed this to happen? He was beginning to wonder if he didn't have the entire story. He was picking up everything from second-hand sources.

Pushing the sleeve up on her right arm, Lucifer ran his hand over his sister's wrist. On the pulse point on the inner wrist, he began to burn a symbol. A feather with Angelic script underneath reading Redemption. It seemed like a tattoo but actually, upon closer inspection, was a scar. John winced in sympathy but if the girl felt the pain, she didn't show it.

"Neither of you will remember this encounter. When you awake, you will be traveling partners and no questions will be asked. It will be as if you have been with one another for months. When the time comes, as it surely will, when she will start her penance, this symbol will be vital. It will hold a memory, a strong one that will trigger her acceptance. Just like a bite from the forbidden fruit."

"Wait, wot?! What if I have some questions now about everything-"

"There is no time for that. All that matters is this: Do not disappoint me, John Constantine."

The Dreaming, 415 BCE

"Come on, Morpheus, you can't be serious with this." You lay on your back, staring at the strange creation in front of you. You had seen quite a lot of things in your time of existence but you would never get used to the dreams and nightmares that Morpheus would create. He had a big imagination, that's for sure. Even looking at it from your upside-down point of view, you could see Dream's touch. Anything your Father came up with never could compare.

"You can't keep making your nightmares handsome, okay? You're gonna give people a complex. Like that man Desire cursed, Oedipus?"

"He has teeth instead of eyes. How is he handsome?" His eyes narrowed as he looked at the blonde creation. Sometimes he could be so dense, "And Oedipus had sexual relations with his own mother. I don't see how that's relevant to what we're dealing with in the present moment."

Using your wings to push yourself off the rock you claimed as a chair, you ended up doing a strange backflip before getting back to your feet. The fog dispersed around you as you landed with ease, revealing the dark gray rock that made up this strange area of the Dreaming. You called it Dream's Workshop, though he insisted it had a proper name. Morpheus let you watch him at work while you worked on your own duties, knowing how you preferred to be with someone rather than alone. It took a lot of effort for you to carve a place in his dark heart but you had time. If you had anything, it was time.

Each step you took seemed to only glance over the ground as if you were floating above the rocks naturally; you looked weightless. With a simple wave of your hand over the creature's "eyes", a dark piece of cloth covered the one obvious indicator that the creature was a nightmare. Now he looked like a normal human would, though admittedly more attractive. His face still was all sharp edges and harsh curves, his smile with teeth like a military graveyard. Was Morpheus so blind that he couldn't see when he made something attractive?

"See? Might as well just call him Adonis."

"It doesn't matter what he looks like," Morpheus clasped his hands behind his back, stopping to look at the nightmare's new profile. He didn't want to admit it but he did enjoy the look of the blindfold. It hid what was frightening and would allow it to be a surprise for whoever this nightmare would haunt. Some nightmares were more monster based while others were closer to humanoid shapes. The younger children were mostly scared of monsters under their beds, but their nightmares became more abstract as they grew older. Failure, loneliness- Dream had to be more creative with his creations when the humans got older. With this nightmare, he intended to use it for adults who have fears of not having control as well as the unknown. So many couldn't handle the feeling of being helpless...Perhaps he should send this nightmare to those that made others helpless, allowing them to feel what they wrought for a change. He did like karmic revenge.

"I don't know. You don't want your dreamer to be scared and attracted at the same moment." You teased, crossing your arms over your chest, "That will be very confusing~. But, he looks good. Teeth for eyes, he could bite you in three different places at the same time! I guess they all would be near each other since, obviously, they still are just on the face. I bet his nightmare would be the ones where you lose your teeth."

"Hmph."

"What will you call him?"

"The Corinthian."

"After the town?"

"Yes, the one where crime runs rampant."

"Hm...It fits," Moving forward, you tossed your arms over Morpheus' shoulders to drape yourself lazily against him. You knew that his face would scrunch up, pretending he didn't like your touch. It had taken centuries for you to even get him to accept any touch and still, he would happily deny it to this day. Even still, you swore that you felt him lean into your touch a few times...He couldn't hate it all the time. But, you kept your mouth shut, knowing he would only lash out if you brought it up. He would give you the silent treatment for decades. You had already experienced that after you played around with his raven, Lucienne. Boy had he been upset when he found you. Though you hadn't done anything wrong, he was just a spoiled sport! Lucienne hadn't even minded...

"Do Nightmares ever dislike what they have to do?"

"I don't care enough to ask." With a hum, Morpheus fixed the blindfold that covered the Corinthian's eyes. He couldn't have his nightmare blindfolded with a cloth tied off with a bow. It didn't scream frightening. A basic knot would do, "They are necessary for humans to work through issues while still being able to wake up, safely. The nightmares have work to do, which, by the by, shouldn't you be working on your own duties instead of bothering me while I complete mine?"

With a small whine, you stretched out your wings and flew up a few feet forward to face Morpheus. With a flick of your wrist, you gestured to the collection of fireflies that was flying next to where you had been laying, "I am working, just so you know. Do you not see my own creations? These are the hopes of children if you must know. At least, some of them anyway."

While Dream could make whatever he wanted, you had to follow a few more rules. Working for the Big Man himself, your Father, he liked everything to be exactly how he wanted. Part of that was everyone doing their jobs and if you weren't, someone might take your place. Luckily, you were in one of the irreplaceable ones, being part of the Seven Virtues. You and your siblings weren't angels, per se, you were Virtues. You were your own type of being. You were all Celestials. It was true that Angels were the most populous and visited the humans the most, but that didn't mean you were all Angels

The seven of you, the Virtues, had your individual jobs and tasks assigned to you. One of your main personal jobs was creating the essence of Hope and finding different ways of spreading it throughout Earth. Sometimes you put it in animals, sometimes you put it in plants, and sometimes it was just a certain smell. Depending on the human, hope could be found in many different things. Some could pull essence simply from the air while others needed a bit more help.

Fireflies were your favorite. They had been your own creation, the one being on this Earth that you made. Your Father allowed all seven of the Virtues to make one animal when they were old enough and you ended up creating the firefly. You based it on one of your good memories of being a young fledgling. Samael would stand over your crib and entertain you by making lights with his fingers. That was a long time ago and Samael...He wasn't Samael anymore. He fell. But, you made the fireflies in honor of that memory. You think your Father knew that and gave the little bugs a short lifespan because of it. He had been your Father's favorite and when he left, your Father took it hard. You heard Samael went by a different name now but didn't know it...You didn't know if you would ever see him again. You had a feeling that no one told you his name in fear that you would try to find him.

Being a Virtue could be difficult. They were looked at highly by the other Celestials and were expected to do the best. The only group that had any sort of authority over the Virtues were the Seven Archangels as well as Metatron. All seven of you were created just before humans, being a strange unique creation of your Father. Only seven of you existed...You weren't part of the hierarchy of Angels or the main grouping. You weren't Angels after all. The Virtues were special, just like the Endless. The biggest difference was that you lived in The Silver City and your domain itself was past the gates. Truth be told, it could be suffocating when you knew your Father had someone watching you at all times. Seven Virtues, Seven Archangels. One was always spectating.

Perhaps that was one of the reasons you spent so much time in the Dreaming. You knew your Father couldn't send anyone into their realms, a deal he had originally made with Night and Time but had apparently been passed down to their children. The first time you ever ended up in the Dreaming, you had snuck in. Well, was it sneaking in if it was an accident? Either way, that was a chaotic story for another time. For now, with a lot of hard work and determination, you had convinced Morpheus to allow you to spend time in his realm as long as you promised not to mess with anything he was doing. The tale of how you met to where you had gotten to now was a very interesting one, you had to admit that. A Virtue and an Endless being friends? Unheard of. Well, Morpheus would say it still was unheard of but you insisted the two of you were friends. You had even grown close to his sister, Death.

"Bugs?"

"You know that they are so much more than that!" You huffed, crossing your arms over your chest in defiance at Morpheus' words, "I have done a good amount of work today."

"I have a feeling your siblings would care to argue otherwise."

"Well, then they can come and tell me that themselves but for now, I think that I deserve a good break."

"I swear John, if you ate all the chocolate flapjacks again!"

"I did not-!"

"John!"

"I swear, love!"

John knew what it was like to have an older sister. He would bet this was what it was like to have a younger one. Annoying, never listening to you, always bugging you for this or that. Yup, that seemed about right. He didn't get how you could already have this much energy this early in the morning. This was why he was so against you drinking coffee at any point during the day. You already were filled with enough energy for both of you. Adding any caffeine to that just made it ten times worse. He didn't need to learn that lesson more than once.

"You know I prefer a brew for breakfast." He walked into the kitchen to see you standing there, all legs and way too much optimism for the world. John could admit that you were an attractive lady and perhaps in other situations, a one-nighter might have been in the cards. But, with you under his protection and the bond forming between you two, it all changed. To be honest, Constantine couldn't remember what exactly he was protecting you from or why but knew you were in danger. You were his little buddy and he had to keep you safe. You were special to the mage, after all.

"That's a problem we'll talk about on another day." You hummed as you placed the frozen breakfast food in the toaster. He didn't understand why you liked sweets so much. He was more of a savory guy himself.

John lazily moved from where he was leaning to taking a seat at the small two-person table. Most mornings would start like this. He would drink his morning pint while you had whatever sweet treat you decided to ruin your body with that day. He would grumble whenever you tried to talk to him, spitting out some excuse of it being too early or how he had a hangover. You never listened.

"Whatever you say, darlin'."

Piling the flapjacks onto your plate once done, you made a stack of four of the sweet treats. Adding probably too much syrup than was good for you, you plopped yourself down in the seat across from John. The two of you were in a small flat in London, one that was provided to John by someone. Someone you didn't know. There was a question of whether John really knew who was paying the rent or not. At least, you were questioning it.

"Can you teach me some more today?"

"Teach you what? How to get a job and stop leeching off of me so you can go live on your own? That sounds like-"

"No! Magic, you Muppet!" Constantine couldn't help but chuckle at your pronunciation of the word. Most of the time, you sounded American, but for certain words you learned from him, well, you kept the British twang on those. It made an interesting accent and never failed to amuse John.

"Why should I? Hm?"

"Because...A demon might show up when you're asleep and I might need to defend myself." For some reason that John Constantine couldn't remember, that seemed more likely a threat than how you were saying it. It made a shiver run down his spine. It had been a nice morning until you reminded him of the danger you were in. He hated having the knowledge that for some reason, you were being hunted but by what and for what reason were still a mystery. He hated that unknowing. It made everything just that more dangerous.

"I don't know, mate. Is that a good enough reason to ruin my afternoon? I could be out at the pub, you know. Maybe finding a bird to bring back to the flat? Have a nice night with a nice lady."

"You wish!" Shoveling flapjacks in your mouth, you kicked the man under the table lightly in annoyance. A groan slipped past his lips and he set his beer on the table to keep from spilling it. He was such a drama queen at times!

"Whatever, we have to meet up with Johanna anyway." You continued, cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk's, "So I bet I can just ask her to teach me a few more things. She'd be happy to."

"She'd be happy to have 'ye in her bed as well! I've told ya, you need to be careful around her! Bless my sister's heart but that woman can be like a dog with two dicks. She'll teach 'ye magic alright if she thinks it might getcha in her bed at the end of the day."

Since Johanna didn't spend as much time with you, she didn't develop the same type of feelings that John did. To her, you would never be like a sibling. You always would be open for some fun. Sometimes John thought she messed with you just to get to him. He couldn't help that he was protective of you...

"You do this just to annoy me, right?" You pointed an accusatory fork in his direction, "Johanna isn't that bad. We get along great."

"I didn't say you two didn't. What I am sayin' is that she likes to play a dangerous game and trust me when I say you have enough of that in your life already."

"But, 'yer right," He continued, "Jo will be expecting us."

"What does she need help with this time?"

"An exorcism. Must be a pretty bad one too if she needs two hands on the wheel to get the bugger out. Either way, you listen to me this time, alright? No makin' more problems when we are there to fix 'em. Don't need you being cheeky on me. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I hear ya. No fun for me. Stay back and just watch, keep out of the way."

"Right on the money, love."

"...Wait, are we gonna be paid for this?!"

"Bloody Hell..."

"Can I bring my sand with us?!"

#the thing with feathers #the sandman #the sandman x reader #sandman x reader #dream x reader #dream of the endless x reader #Morpheus x You #lord morpheus x reader #dream of the endless #destiny of the endless #death of the endless #destruction of the endless #desire of the endless #despair of the endless #delirium of the endless #delight of the endless #john constantine #johanna constantine #the corinthian

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denimbex1986 · 9 months

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'In case you didn't hear, Oppenheimer has a stacked cast — stacked to a degree that we haven't seen since Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet back in 1996. It's one thing to have a top-level cast of main actors like Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, and Florence Pugh; it's another to have characters that appear on-screen for all of a few minutes be filled with actors like Rami Malek, Casey Affleck, Gary Oldman, and the '90s king himself Josh Hartnett. Whether you knew ahead of time any of these actors would be in this film or not, it provides a small surge of surprise at the moment and makes the audience perk up and pay more attention to what a seemingly small character is doing if it's somebody with a proven screen presence and a history with the audience.

How Does Christopher Nolan Use Casting To Flesh Out Smaller Roles?

Christopher Nolan seems to cast smaller roles in his films with actors who have generally played clear types of characters before. The audience's familiarity with the kinds of characters these actors have generally played in the past fill in the smaller roles in Nolan's films, thereby making it easier for the audience to get a handle on who these people are without fully introducing them through the writing itself. Early on in Oppenheimer, we're introduced to Niels Bohr, a famous scientist who Oppenheimer admired, and he's played by Kenneth Branagh, who imbues him with that feeling of commanding leadership and portentous charisma he brought to his previous roles in Dunkirk and Tenet. This ensures that we know why Oppenheimer looked up to him and was influential in setting him on his path of scientific pursuit.

Or take Gary Oldman, who has arguably the shortest role of all the major actors, since he's in one scene for about three minutes as President Harry Truman, meeting with Oppenheimer after dropping the atomic bombs on Japan. This time, the use of Oldman comes as a misdirection, as his history with Nolan recalls being the honest and good-hearted Jim Gordon in The Dark Knight trilogy, while his heavily prosthetic-laden appearance recalls his Oscar-winning role as historical antifascist hero Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour. Except in this film, Truman turns out to be neither; he's a crass and vainglorious bully who hates that Oppenheimer feels guilty for creating the bomb, calls him a "crybaby" and demands he gets out of his office. It's devastating and almost a betrayal to Oppenheimer's character, and the betrayal is magnified by our mixed history of Oldman as both upstanding figures and dastardly villains in mainstream films.

Christopher Nolan Uses Typecasting to His Advantage

Beyond Oppenheimer's cameos, some characters do have larger roles in the movie's plot but are largely defined by their function in service to the plot rather than by their personality. Those roles, then, seem to have been filled with actors who have a consistent reputation for certain characters. Take Dane DeHaan, who plays a military authority figure who works for Matt Damon's character and spends most of his screen time glowering and staring at others with condescension. This comes off as more believable coming from DeHaan since we know him primarily for a history of playing unstable or angry men in projects like Chronicle, Lawless, The Amazing Spider-Man 2. My favorite instance of this practice is David Dastmalchian, an associate of Oppenheimer's rival, Lewis Strauss (Downey, Jr.), who is always defined as being shifty, untrustworthy, and a human rat. Dastmalchian is delightful in this role not simply because he has the perfect big eyes and tight sickly demeanor, but we project his more notable roles as crazed suspicious men like Bob Taylor in Prisoners or the cop that the Joker recruited in The Dark Knight onto this walking red flag of a whistleblower.

If it isn't related to past history, sometimes it's just how an actor looks that perfectly enhances the character. The strangest example of this is Rami Malek's presence. Malek plays a scientist of relative unimportance, who is in two separate scenes where he says nothing and just looks awkward and terrified at making a wrong move. He's such a shivering puppy that you barely register him as even there. So when Strauss is made aware that a surprise witness could blow up his chance at being added to President Eisenhower's cabinet, and he openly wonders who it is, and Rami Malek shows up with his gargantuan moon eyes laser focused with secrets to spill, it's an awesome "oh THAT GUY" moment.

'Oppenheimer' Continues a Great Cameo-Casting Tradition

While this film may have gotten a lot of press for having so many big names in small roles, this isn't really all that new an occurrence for a major film to do. If you look back throughout mainstream film history, there are some great instances of already reputable actors having small roles that drastically enhanced that role's quality. Holly Hunter was already an established Oscar-nominated actress when she showed up for around six minutes in The Firm as Gary Busey's Southern belle secretary who existed mostly for exposition purposes, and her sass and sex appeal exploded off the screen and got another Oscar nomination (the same year she won for The Piano, no less).

Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet got Charlton Heston to perform a monologue that's irrelevant to the plot and got Richard Attenborough for just one scene to deliver the iconic statement that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. In Network, Ned Beatty is in about one and a half scenes where he mostly screams and disciplines Peter Finch about how he was threatening their media relations with his ranting, and it was so memorable that...twist, he got an Oscar nomination. Absolutely none of these roles were at all primed for those levels of success and recognition, but they were elevated to that status by having great actors in the right parts. Similar to Oppenheimer with Christopher Nolan, you get multiple actors to show up for small roles by being a hugely trusted director like Sidney Lumet or Sydney Pollack who are gifted with directing actors.

Christopher Nolan's Clout Attracts A-List Actors

Christopher Nolan has come a long way since Memento. He's now a five-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker (he's bound to add more to that resume, come award season) and one of the few truly auteur-branded directors in the business. At a time when Quentin Tarantino may be making one more film before retiring and most big-name directors get sucked into franchises before they have a chance to form their own identity, Nolan has expertly maneuvered his way through an evolving industry, attaching himself to a franchise he actually believed in and shepherded in order to boost his platform, then delivered on big original projects enough times that he can get a blank check for whatever he wants. With this power comes one of the most potent things a filmmaker can have: clout.

Christopher Nolan's clout attracts A-list actors and actresses out of respect and allure. Plus, his films have a guaranteed audience. On top of that, Nolan is often cited as a dream director to work with, an amazing collaborator who knows how to nudge actors in the direction he needs them to go without being fully dictatorial. If you're a high-profile actor, and you're given a good role by a great director, with a good salary and not much time taken out of your life, what's the downside? Just hope that your director has some good stuff for you to do.'

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