Cillian Murphy in "Oppenheimer."Universal

Is it safe to say that Cillian Murphy has locked up the Best Actor Oscar for 2024?

True, it’s early days, but a new trailer for his hoped-for summer blockbuster "Oppenheimer" debuted on Monday, and wow, the Christopher Nolan film looks like a sure winner.

Murphy plays theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, “the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory during the Manhattan Project in World War II, and his contributions that led to the creation of the atomic bomb,” so says the film summary. 

The all-star cast includes Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., and Florence Pugh.

The public made the film trend for a good chunk of Monday when the new trailer dropped, and many agreed that Murphy can start writing his acceptance speeches now.

YouTube user @bobbyricigliano2799 wrote, "Genuinely think this might be Christopher Nolan's best film since Inception. Cillian Murphy better get award nominations for this because what he can do with his eyes alone is astounding."

@blee45 declared, "Cillian Murphy is one of the greatest actors of this generation. If I knew nothing else about this film, I'd go see it on the strength of his talent alone."

Murphy, 46, has yet to be nominated for an Oscar. He was nominated for a Golden Globe in 2006 for "Breakfast on Pluto."

“I’m really proud of the movie and I’m really proud of what Chris [Nolan] has achieved. This was, for sure, a special one, certainly because of the history with me and Chris. We were not walking around the set high-fiving, but it did feel special,” Murphy told the Associated Press last month.

 The Cork star starred as the villain Scarecrow in Nolan's celebrated trilogy of "Batman." In "Inception," he played the wealthy target of that movie's mental heist. He also had a role as a shell-shocked soldier in the director's first foray into World War II drama, 2017's "Dunkirk."

"Oppenheimer" opens on July 21, 2023.

You can watch the new trailer for "Oppenheimer" here:

*This column first appeared in the May 10 edition of the weekly Irish Voice newspaper, sister publication to IrishCentral.