Robert Pattinson, John David Washington Bend Time in First Trailer for Christopher Nolan’s Tenet
Christopher Nolan is confounding fans once again.
The first trailer for Nolan’s upcoming spy thriller Tenet debuted on Thursday and showcased a time-warping plot with a similar style to his 2010 film Inception.
The film stars Robert Pattinson and John David Washington as two agents trained to stop World War III.
Martin Donovan, Kenneth Branagh, Michael Caine, Elizabeth Debicki, Clémence Poésy and Himesh Patel also appear in the film.
“You chose to die instead of giving up your call ways,” Donovan’s character tells Washington’s. “You passed the test, not everybody does. Welcome to the afterlife.”
As Washington becomes embroiled in an international plot, he must find out what or who he is fighting against.
“Nuclear holocaust?” He guesses as Poesy’s character tells him, “No. Something worse.”
One car chase sequence reveals a key clue into what forces Washington and Pattinson are up against as a car crashes next to them only for time to rewind and leave the car undisturbed.
“Don’t try to understand it,” a voice says. “Feel it.”
Not much else is known about the plot, although Nolan told Entertainment Weekly on Wednesday the movie is “an action epic evolving from the world of international espionage.”
RELATED: Christopher Nolan Says His New Espionage Film with Robert Pattinson Is His ‘Biggest’ Yet
“We’re jumping off from the point of view of an espionage film, but we’re going to a number of different places,” Nolan told EW. “We’re crossing a few different genres in a hopefully exciting and fresh way. [Producer] Emma [Thomas] and I have put together a lot of large-scale productions, but this is certainly the biggest in terms of international reach.”
He added, “We shot in seven countries, all over the place, with a massive cast and huge set pieces. There’s no question, it’s the most ambitious film we’ve made.”
The Dark Knight director also called Washington’s character as “very much the hero” of the film.
“He’s a massively talented actor and physically gifted,” Nolan said. “He’s an athlete and pretty hard for anybody to keep up with, including the different vehicles we shot him from — cars and helicopters. This guy moves.”
Tenet is in theaters on July 17, 2020.
