Steven Spielberg Reveals His All-Time Favorite Christopher Nolan Film, and It Might Surprise You
Steven Spielberg is back in a big way with ‘Disclosure Day’, his long-awaited return to alien territory that arrived in theaters on June 12, 2026. The science-fiction thriller stars Emily Blunt alongside Josh O’Connor, Colin Firth, Colman Domingo, and Wyatt Russell. The film was developed by Spielberg and screenwriter David Koepp, the duo behind ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘War of the Worlds’, and follows what happens when humanity edges dangerously close to a world-altering truth.
As part of the press circuit, Spielberg sat down with Collider alongside his lead actress to break down some of the film’s most ambitious filmmaking choices. Blunt was in the room for the conversation, in which Spielberg also discussed his seemingly open access to top-secret UAP information and his philosophy on crafting iconic one-take sequences, including what turned out to be the longest oner of his entire career. Blunt plays Margaret Fairchild, a Kansas City meteorologist who discovers she has a profound connection to world-changing secrets that only she can reveal, provided she can escape those determined to silence her.
It was during that same sit-down that the interviewer turned the conversation toward Christopher Nolan, and Spielberg did not hesitate for even a second. Speaking to Collider, the director named 2000’s ‘Memento’ as his personal favorite from Nolan’s filmography, declaring, “I do. Memento. It will be my all-time favorite movie that Chris made forever.” Blunt was also present for the exchange, having collaborated with Nolan on ‘Oppenheimer’, the biopic that finally earned him his first Best Director Oscar.
Written and directed by Nolan and inspired by the short story “Memento Mori” penned by his brother Jonathan Nolan, ‘Memento’ stars Guy Pearce as Leonard Shelby, a man left unable to form new long-term memories following a traumatic attack that claimed the life of his wife. Relying on notes, photographs, and tattoos covering his own body, Leonard wages a desperate hunt for the killer responsible, with no ability to retain what he learns from one scene to the next.
What makes ‘Memento’ so structurally audacious is its decision to present the story in reverse chronological order, with a parallel black-and-white timeline moving forward simultaneously, the two eventually colliding in a genuinely startling conclusion. The film earned a 93% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and made over $40 million at the box office against a modest $9 million budget, while also earning Nolan his first Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
When Blunt was asked the same question about her favorite Nolan film, she quickly ruled out ‘Oppenheimer‘ on the grounds that her obvious bias as a cast member made it an unfair pick, before landing on ‘The Dark Knight‘ as her answer. It was a pointed and self-aware response from someone who has now worked closely with both of cinema’s most celebrated directors within the span of just a few years.
Spielberg’s ‘Disclosure Day’ is currently playing in theaters, while Nolan’s next project, ‘The Odyssey’, is set to premiere on July 17, 2026, putting the two directors in direct competition for audiences this summer.
Given how vocal Spielberg has been about his admiration for Nolan’s earliest work, it raises an irresistible question worth debating: do you agree that ‘Memento’ is the crown jewel of Nolan’s filmography, or does another film in his catalog deserve that throne?
