Cillian Murphy’s Mission to Revive a Lost Film and a Forgotten Era

In an age when many actors chase the next box office juggernaut, Cillian Murphy is taking a different path—one that winds back to a 2007 film you’ve likely never seen. Or rather, never could see. Murphy has revealed that his first choice for an “old” movie to re-act in is Hippie Hippie Shake, an unreleased drama co-starring Sienna Miller that he calls a “fascinating time capsule” of the 1960s counterculture. The film, completed nearly two decades ago but shelved due to production disputes, chronicles the rise of London’s underground magazine Oz and the ensuing obscenity trial that tested the boundaries of free expression.

For Murphy, this is more than a nostalgic trip—it’s an act of cultural rescue. He sees Hippie Hippie Shake as a bridge between past and present, a film whose themes of rebellion, creative freedom, and societal pushback still resonate. His plan isn’t just to dust off the original print; he’s considering re-acting select scenes to refine the narrative, and screening the revived work at the restored Phoenix Cinema in Dingle, Ireland—a passion project he undertook with his wife, artist Yvonne McGuinness.

Murphy’s determination reflects a career-long resilience. From his beginnings in Cork to breakout roles in 28 Days Later and Peaky Blinders, and his Oscar-winning turn in Oppenheimer, he has navigated rejection, artistic risk, and grueling roles without losing sight of authenticity. His willingness to revisit a “troubled” project that others might leave buried shows the same quiet courage that has shaped his work—a refusal to let potentially important art vanish into obscurity.

What sets Murphy apart is the selflessness underpinning this mission. While he could choose a commercially safer project, he’s instead investing in a film whose value lies in its story, not its marketability. His interest in Hippie Hippie Shake mirrors his approach to Small Things Like These, insisting on location shoots to preserve “texture” and truth. In both cases, Murphy prioritizes integrity over convenience, connection over spectacle.

And it’s not just about his own career. By transforming the Phoenix Cinema into a hub for screening overlooked films, Murphy is giving these cultural artifacts a second life, ensuring they can inspire and provoke new audiences. It’s a gesture rooted in community, history, and the belief that art—like the rebellious spirit of the ‘60s—should be shared, debated, and celebrated.

In championing Hippie Hippie Shake, Murphy is doing more than reviving a lost film. He’s reaffirming that cinema is not just entertainment, but a living archive of human struggle, creativity, and defiance. And in doing so, he’s proving that the most noble roles an actor can take on sometimes happen off-screen.