In any other world, it would be hard to find similarities between a film starring Cillian Murphy about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, and Margot Robbie s Barbie odyssey. But in this world, the two are inextricably linked thanks to their shared premiere date. With both Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie dropping on July 21st, the day has already become known as Barbenheimer.
While Barbie is painting the town hot pink, Oppenheimer has taken a subtler approach to promo. “Really crazy how the marketing for this really is just them releasing stills of Cillian Murphy and they all go viral,” one user tweeted. The Barbie press tour has generated infinite buzz, thanks largely in part to Margot Robbie’s stylist, Andrew Mukamal, who has dressed the star in replicas of vintage Barbie looks. This style of method dressing has become a tentpole of Barbie promotion, but I’d argue that Murphy’s recent press looks, styled by Rose Forde, are the perfect antidote to the Barbie sugar high.
While men have been admiring the Irish actor’s sartorial and grooming choices since his days on Peaky Blinders, Murphy has been pulling out looks that can be rocked by any gender. Do I smell a new style icon?
Though the world premiere of Oppenheimer seemed a much milder affair than Barbie’s, Murphy still nodded to the film s subject matter and era with a khaki, militaristic custom Prada button-down and matching tie under his black suit jacket—perhaps a reference to the complicated man behind the Manhattan Project without turning too meta. He hasn’t stopped there. Murphy showed off his forearms in a navy v-neck cardigan by Studio Nicholson over a white Sunspel t-shirt, complete with tailored trousers and loafers during a cast photocall that finally gives us a definitive answer: yes, black and navy do work together.
Murphy clearly feels comfortable in monochrome, judging by his all-brown suiting at a cast photocall July 11. And in what I’d venture is one of his finest outfits, the star celebrated his BAFTA nomination for Peaky Blinders at the May 14 awards ceremony in a beautifully fitted suit with a tastefully disheveled black button-down and a haphazardly knotted tie, which hung loosely around his neck. But he also isn t afraid of a pop of color, as evidenced by the tomato red cardigan he wore to BBC Radio 2 in London on July 13. Nor is he scared to try out the sheer trend, which he broke out for the London premiere later that day, accessorizing with a subtle gold-tipped bolo tie.
My favorite look of Murphy’s thus far has to be the sleek travel ‘fit he wore at the Gare du Nord on July 12 (another ode to black and navy). His relaxed navy Sunspel t-shirt and black trousers generally aren t something to write home about, but with pitch perfect styling—loafers, wayfarers, and a gorgeous leather carry-on—he has never looked more like a movie star.
Check out some of Murphy s best looks below:
