Christopher Nolan has said he is on the lookout for the right concept to make a horror film, telling The Hollywood Reporter that the genre demands "an amazing idea" before he would commit to it. The comments come as his latest release, The Odyssey, enjoys a record-breaking theatrical run and widespread critical praise, prompting speculation about what he might tackle next.

Nolan explained that The Odyssey touches on several horror sub-genres, which has whetted his appetite for the style, but stressed that any horror project must be approached carefully from a conceptual standpoint rather than being about technical craft. He cited Curry Barker's film Obsession as an example of the kind of strong idea he admires, and when asked whether actor Robert Pattinson had given him a Stephen King novel to adapt—echoing how a gift from Pattinson once helped spark Oppenheimer—Nolan said that, sadly, was not the case.