A line from the Hindu Bhagavad Gita famously ran through his mind: “I am become Death, destroyer of worlds.”
Now, the true story of Oppenheimer and his involvement in the creation of the atomic bomb has come to the big screen courtesy of director Christopher Nolan (Dunkirk).
The star-studded cast of the movie is led by Cillian Murphy, who portrays Oppenheimer, while Florence Pugh stars as real-life figure Jean Tatlock and Robert Downey Jr stars as Lewis Strauss.
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Fans of Nolan's filmography will know that he loves complex narratives and non-linear storytelling, and Oppenheimer is no different, unfolding across various timelines.
But if you've been left a little confused about the closing chapters of the film and their exact significance, read on to have the Oppenheimer ending explained.
Oppenheimer ending explained
Although many cinemagoers might have expected the film's climactic moments to be the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, this is not the case.
Indeed the only – admittedly impressive – bomb scene in the film is a reenactment of the Trinity test, which comes roughly two-thirds into the film's runtime before the final hour explores the repercussions, both for the world at large and more specifically for Oppenheimer's psyche.
Much of that hour focuses on Oppenheimer's inner torment as he reckons with the fact he is responsible for a bomb that not only killed hundreds of thousands of civilians but has now led to a nuclear arms race from which there is no turning back.
In one scene, he meets with US President Harry S Truman (Gary Oldman), who chastises him for feeling guilty about the bomb, explaining that he was the man that made the call rather than Oppenheimer, but this does little to make him feel better.
We also see him campaign against further nuclear proliferation, which was one of the key reasons behind the security hearings that form a bulk of the film's narrative and was also one of the reasons for Lewis Strauss's staunch opposition towards him.
What did Lewis Strauss do to Oppenheimer?
Strauss had Oppenheimer's security clearances revoked and, in the end, his motivations for wanting this are made clear.
It emerges that Strauss thought that Oppenheimer had badmouthed him to Einstein during a conversation that had been teased but left mysterious for much of the film.
Additionally, Strauss had felt humiliated by Oppenheimer in public settings and in front of their colleagues, being made to feel inadequate or under-qualified.
Thus, the fact his revenge in the film also seals the end of his political rise carries dramatic weight.
What did Albert Einstein say to J Robert Oppenheimer at the end of the film Oppenheimer?
In the film's closing moments, we learn that Oppenheimer and Einstein had not actually been discussing Strauss at all, but rather were having an exchange about the bomb's impact on the world.
Specifically, Oppenheimer reminds Einstein that while the bomb was still being constructed, they had fears that it might accidentally set in motion a chain reaction that would destroy the entire universe. "What of it?" asks Einstein.
Oppenheimer's answer is the final line of the film. "I believe we did," he says before we are shown a sequence depicting the world being destroyed by modern nuclear weapons.
Oppenheimer's final scene explained: What happened to Oppenheimer after the bomb?
What Oppenheimer means by his comment to Einstein and his subsequent fantasy of a nuclear holocaust is that although they might not have scientifically created such a catastrophic chain reaction, the political ramifications of the bomb's creation are so huge that he believes they started an inevitable journey towards nuclear holocaust and the end of the world.
This fear fits with his actions going through the investigations into whether his security clearance should be revoked, as his wife Kitty feels he is putting himself through such a gruelling experience to punish himself for creating the atomic bomb.
She notes to him after he loses his clearance: "You think because you let them tar and feather you that the world will forgive you? They won't."
Nothing – not even his eventual political rehabilitation later in his life, as shown by his recognition in the White House from President Lyndon B Johnson – can save him from this inner torment, that he really has "Become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds".
How did Jean Tatlock die in Oppenheimer?
In the midst of Oppenheimer's interrogation, we learn of the death of his lover Jean Tatlock, played by Florence Pugh.
In the film, we learn that Tatlock committed suicide and was found lying on a pile of cushions in the bathroom, with her head submerged in a partly-filled bathtub.
A suicide note was with Tatlock, who was of interest to the US government due to her ties to the Communist Party.
However, in one shot, we briefly see a black-gloved hand holding her head underwater, but it is unclear if this is in Oppenheimer's imagination or if this is meant to depict her death.
The film is acknowledging the conspiracy theories around Tatlock's death, with a formal inquest suggesting that she had consumed chloral hydrate and then submerged her head in the bathtub.
Yet, many believe it is possible that she was murdered by intelligence agents working for the Manhattan Project.
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Oppenheimer is in UK cinemas now. Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on tonight.
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