View of the statue of J. Robert Oppenheimer in the park next to the Fuller Lodge, in Manhattan Project National Historical Park, in Los Alamos, New Mexico, on February 20, 2024. Christopher Nolan's $1 billion-grossing "Oppenheimer" hasn't just lined the pockets of Hollywood studio executives -- it has also brought an unexpected windfall to the secretive community of Los Alamos.
The movie, the clear frontrunner to win best picture at the Oscars on March 10, tells the story of the invention of the atomic bomb.
Much of the action takes place in Los Alamos, a town built around a top-secret lab that was created from scratch in New Mexico at the suggestion of physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, who had a lifelong passion for the surrounding mountains. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)