The Major Murph Clue You Missed Early In Interstellar
After concluding DC's "The Dark Knight" trilogy, Christopher Nolan shot for the stars with "Interstellar," an original science-fiction film. Co-written by Nolan and his brother, Jonathan, the film was praised for its blockbuster visuals and emotional storyline (via Sydney Morning Herald) and currently holds a "Certified Fresh" badge on Rotten Tomatoes, having earned the praise of 72% of critics. The film was a commercial hit too, grossing over $670 million worldwide when it beamed into cinemas in 2014 (via Box Office Mojo).
"Interstellar" focuses on humanity's mission to find hospitable new planets after Earth's resources have been depleted. The man leading the mission is former pilot Joseph A. Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), who joins a team of NASA scientists to find humanity's next home. In the process of joining the interplanetary mission, Cooper leaves behind his daughter, Murph (Mackenzie Foy), with whom he shares an irreplaceable bond, and his son, Tom, a character you likely forgot Timothée Chalamet played.
After Cooper's mission for the future of humanity doesn't go as planned, the astronaut attempts to find his way back to his family, something that sadly takes him far longer than anyone would have predicted. Like many of Nolan's previous cinematic efforts, the blockbuster is filled with plenty of high-stakes twists, many emotional turns, and a plethora of mysterious clues. During the film's opening moments, Nolan carefully lays down a clue regarding Murph's future and the outcome of Cooper's mission.
Old Murph can be seen in the film's first few minutes
As "Interstellar" comes to a close, Cooper shares an emotional reunion with a much older version of Murph, now played by Ellen Burstyn. While the events depicted in the film may have only felt like a short time for Cooper, who was stranded in space, time on Earth continued to pass as expected. Sadly, Murph lived most of her life without her father by her side. Indeed, in the moments after Cooper returns to civilization, it is revealed that Murph placed herself in cryosleep in order to remain alive long enough to witness her father's long-awaited return.
Audiences who watch the film on repeat will realize that the older Murph is actually seen in the film's first few minutes, which briefly shows interviews in which senior citizens talk about their past and the history of the human race. The footage from the interviews doesn't explicitly say the woman's name, so unassuming audiences likely wouldn't know that the woman is Murph.
However, those who decide to watch the film with subtitles for the first time will have the revelation made abundantly clear as the closed captioning labels the woman as "Old Murph." While the slight spoiler shouldn't take away from the film's emotional ending, it proves that Nolan is an expert in laying down breadcrumbs for those who want to dig deeper.