Christopher Nolan’s canceled movie with Jim Carrey sounds incredible

Christopher Nolan has worked with some of the greatest actors of any generation, but he almost worked with another legendary icon: Jim Carrey.

Jim Carrey says he’s retired now, though he appears to have no qualms about returning for another family-friendly romp as Doctor Robotnik. The actor reprises the role for Sonic the Hedgehog 3, his first acting gig since 2022’s Sonic 2.

Carrey has had an incredibly prolific career and, while he was initially hailed as one of the finest comedic actors of the ’90s, he quickly made a name for himself as a dramatic actor thanks to The Truman Show, The Number 27, and Man on the Moon.

But he very nearly starred in a film from Oscar-winner Christopher Nolan. Fans were reminded of this when the account Christopher Nolan Art & Updates shared a post about the scrapped film on social media.

Nolan actually revealed the failed project in a 2023 interview with Variety shortly after Oppenheimer blew up at the box office. In the early 2000s, Nolan was keen to do a biopic about Howard Hughes and was eyeing Carrey for the lead role.

Unfortunately, Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator went into production just as Nolan was finishing the screenplay.

Not wanting to compete with Scorsese’s project, Nolan scrapped the film. As a result of this ordeal, Nolan no longer writes a script until a movie has been approved.

It’s a shame because we’ve seen Carrey really go all out as an actor, and his portrayal of the reclusive Hughes could have been incredible. His portrayal of Andy Kaufman for Man of the Moon is legendary, and he’s had plenty of roles that see him devolve into a broken, tortured soul.

Nolan’s next theatrical outing is potentially an Interstellar anniversary re-release, assuming the film reels can be found, while Carrey will be in Sonic 3 when it hits theaters on December 21, 2024.

In the meantime, check out our ranking of the best video game movies of all time, and other new movies you can watch this month.