Cillian Murphy is currently garnering a heap of acclaim, including a 2024 Academy Award nomination for his role as the eponymous physicist in Christopher Nolan’s epic biopic, Oppenheimer. But, though he has plenty of other acclaimed performances on his CV, from Peaky Blinders boss Tommy Shelby to survivor Jim in Danny Boyle’s 28 Day Later, there’s one he’s seemingly less than fond of. Believe it or not, t’s his role in Wes Craven’s moderately reviewed, 2005 thriller, Red Eye, and I couldn’t disagree with him more.
The Irish actor participated in a cover story interview with GQ, during which he discussed his decades-spanning career. That included the airplane-set psychological thriller, which sees him play Jackson Rippner, a domestic terrorist who takes hotel manager Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams) hostage while aboard a red-eye flight to Miami. During the chat, he did acknowledge how much of a fan-favorite the flick is. And there are many things to love about Red Eye, from how much tension Wes Craven manages to cram into a taut 90 minutes to how Cillian Murphy renders a truly scary modern horror villain by chillingly playing “the nice guy and the bad guy in one.” When asked about the movie’s enduring popularity, he said:
Oh, I know, it’s crazy! I think it’s the duality of it. It’s why I wanted to play it. That two thing. The nice guy and the bad guy in one. The only reason it appealed to me is you could do that *snaps fingers* that turn, you know?
However, the performer doesn’t consider the thriller among his best titles. As a matter of fact, in his eyes, it’s a “good B movie”:
I love Rachel McAdams and we had fun making it. But I don’t think it’s a good movie. It’s a good B movie.
These are definitely surprising thoughts to say the least. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a B movie, but I certainly wouldn’t put this thriller in that category. One has to wonder, then, if Mr. Murphy has even seen Red Eye, as he admitted to the publication that he hasn’t screened all of his works, particularly if he’s heard they’re “not good”:
Many of my films I haven’t seen. I know that Johnny Depp would always say that, but it’s actually true. Generally the ones I haven’t seen are the ones I hear are not good.
His co-star, Rachel McAdams (who spoke with GQ as well), was a bit kinder when discussing Cillian Murphy’s performance. As she put it, “the nicest people sometimes make the best villains.” (Murphy would also famously play a bad guy, Scarecrow, in Christoper Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, which has a cool link to Oppenheimer.) The actress:
They say the nicest people sometimes make the best villains. We’d listen to music and gab away while doing the crossword puzzle, which he brought every day and would graciously let me chime in on.… I think the number one question I got about Cillian way back then was whether or not he wore contact lenses.
I, for one, consider Red Eye among Cillian Murphy’s best movies, as the actor weaponizes the harmless, cherubic qualities of his face to lull Rachel McAdams’ character and the audience into a false sense of security in the film’s first few minutes before unleashing the full, unhinged potential of Jackson’s villainy. What’s also wild is that the beginning practically plays out like a classic romantic comedy, with the duo having a meet-cute at the airport. It’s a story filled with twists and turns and is definitely worth checking out.
I’m not sure that the leading man will change his mind about the feature at this point. However, as is the case with me, it’s likely that fans’ love for the flick won’t be deterred by the fan-favorite star’s honest thoughts.
Do you agree with Cillian Murphy that Red Eye isn’t a high point in his acting career? Regardless, you can revisit the fun, fast-paced thriller with a Paramount+ subscription.