Watch 5 minutes from 'Oppenheimer' before film hits theaters next week

By Carson Blackwelder

Five minutes of footage from "Oppenheimer" has been released to tide fans over until the film hits theaters next week.

Billed as an "Opening Look" at Christopher Nolan's latest epic, the sneak peek was shared online Thursday.

While we see plenty of Cillian Murphy as the titular J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, this new footage gives viewers a deeper look at characters played by Robert Downey Jr. and Matt Damon.

Downey appears as Lewis Strauss, a former chairman of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, in black and white scenes, questioning Murphy's Oppenheimer about the Trinity test and the work done at Oppenheimer's Los Alamos laboratory compound.

In clips of Strauss, he tells Oppenheimer the race to build atomic weapons is no longer with the Nazis and is instead against the Soviets and suggests there may have been a spy in Oppenheimer's ranks.

Damon also steps into the spotlight more as Leslie Groves, a lieutenant general who served as director of the Manhattan Project, in colorful scenes.

"We had a moment where it looked like the chain reaction from an atomic device might never stop," Oppenheimer says, to which Groves fires back, "Are we saying there's a chance that when we push that button we destroy the world?"

"Chances are near 0," Oppenheimer answers, asking Groves what he expects when dealing with theory. "Zero would be nice," he deadpans.

We see a slew of other cast members during the five minutes of footage, including Emily Blunt and Florence Pugh.

Also on display are stunning visuals from cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema and a stirring score from Ludwig Göransson.

"Oppenheimer" arrives in U.S. theaters on July 21.