Inception star Joseph Gordon-Levitt has shot down a fan's dreams of seeing a sequel to Christopher Nolan's modern sci-fi classic on Twitter. Released in 2010, the film is one of the most successful offerings of the decade, grossing $825.5 million at the worldwide box office and earning a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars (among several other accolades). An original studio tentpole, Inception proved that Nolan's name alone could sell a major motion picture, and Warner Bros. was obviously pleased with the results. The studio has had a longstanding relationship with the director, and Inception no doubt played a sizable role in cementing that partnership.
As presented, Inception tells the story of Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), an experienced extractor who takes one last job to get back home to his children. The film's now-infamous ending showed Cobb having a happy reunion with his family, and the book seemed to be closed. Of course, given how acclaimed and popular Inception is (plus, the world-building that was on display), it stood reason to believe WB would be interested in a sequel. Many years ago, the main cast was reportedly signed on for potential followups, but it looks like that will never come into fruition.
When asked about the possibility of an Inception 2 on Twitter, Gordon-Levitt (who played Cobb's right hand man Arthur) laughed the question off as a way of indicating he won't be returning to the world of dreams soon. Check out his interaction with a fan in the space below:
Hahaahahahaha oh you were serious? https://t.co/YmPFoxlqpO— Joseph Gordon-Levitt (@hitRECordJoe) June 29, 2017
It's easy to see why viewers would want to go back to sleep and wander through limbo, as Inception sported fun character dynamics (Arthur's banter with Tom Hardy's Eames was amusing) and a creative set-up with seemingly unlimited potential. However, those who made Inception don't seem to be giving further adventures any thought. In a way that makes sense, as the film is very much a self-contained narrative with a beginning, middle, and end. The final scene left Cobb's ultimate fate open for interpretation, but it didn't exactly leave things open for another movie. Plus, continuing the tale of Cobb would threaten to undermine the point of Inception's closing shot and sap it of its emotional resonance. For once in Hollywood, a character's "last job" was actually their swan song as they ride off into the sunset.
As director of the famed Dark Knight trilogy, Nolan is no stranger to doing sequels, but outside of Gotham City, he's content with helming standalone movies that aren't meant to spawn franchises (see: Interstellar and Dunkirk). He's proven himself to be an ambitious voice in the industry, and unless he comes up with a rock-solid idea for a second Inception, many would prefer he continues to make original films. Also, key members of the Inception cast have moved on to other endeavors. Hardy is playing Venom for Sony in their blossoming bootleg Spider-Verse and DiCaprio is circling a wide variety of projects to followup his Oscar-winning turn in The Revenant. At least audiences will always have the first and only Inception to revisit whenever they please, which continues to treat some seven years later.
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Source: Joseph Gordon-Levitt