Why do Oppenheimer and the Hungarian Teller seem to be mortal enemies?

Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer recently made its theatrical debut. The film also stars physicists of Hungarian descent, including Leo Szilard as Máté Haumann and Edward Teller as Benny Safdie. The latter becomes the enemy of Oppenheimer and his wife by the end of the film. In our article, we will present the reasons for the confrontation and other fascinating background information about the Hungarian physicist. This article contains minimal spoilers!

Hollywood super-production with Hungarian actors and Hungarian physicists

Christopher Nolan’s latest film, Oppenheimer, has just debuted in cinemas worldwide. The film is about the American Oppenheimer and the Manhattan Project, in which the United States of America creates the first atomic bomb. The film stars Hungarian physicists Leo Szilárd (portrayed by Máté Haumann) and Edward Teller (Benny Safdie), who played a major role in the film and in history.

In one scene of the film, Oppenheimer is honoured and shakes hands with Teller, but his wife’s eyes are shooting thunderbolts at the Hungarian scientist.

The relationship between Teller and Oppenheimer

Edward Teller worked with Oppenheimer on the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, New Mexico. In 1954, Teller argued against Oppenheimer’s security clearance and became one of the film’s antiheroes.

Both Teller and Oppenheimer were born into Jewish families, both studied in Germany, and both initially chose molecular physics as their research subject. However, there were major differences between the two, with Teller’s private life being subdued and Oppenheimer’s turbulent relationship with women. On top of that, thei also shared different views on communism.

At the start of the Cold War, the US began vetting State Department employees. William Borden, the former bureau chief of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy of the US Congress, wrote a letter to FBI agents in November 1953, practically accusing them, saying “it is more likely than not true that J. Robert Oppenheimer is an agent of the Soviet Union.”

The most interesting part of the proceedings, as well as the film, was the hearing of Edward Teller. Teller’s original sentences were transcribed almost verbatim (with some abbreviations) into the script. Which were ambiguous. The nuclear physicist first stated firmly: “I have always assumed and still assume that [Oppenheimer] is loyal to the United States. I believe in him and I will continue to believe in him.” Soon afterwards, however, he said: “I could not agree with him on a number of issues and his actions seemed, frankly, confused and complicated. […] I would prefer to see the vital interests of our country in the hands of someone I understand better and, accordingly, trust more.”

Of all the reputable witnesses, only Tellerr testified against Oppenheimer. In a video interview afterwards, Tellet said he regretted his testimony, after which he was ostracised and often humiliated by the scientific community.

The film glides over these three moments: Teller’s statement was not without influence, he later regretted it, and the end result was not only Oppenheimer’s personal tragedy. It was a tragedy for both of them, writes válaszonline.hu.

Teller’s past in Hungary has also had a profound impact on his life in the US, as his experience in Hungary was far from democratic. For this reason, he, unlike Oppenheimer, did not slow down after World War II, and even continued to be a lobbyist for the arms race.

Teller was a total techno-optimist, so much so that his blind faith in science was at one time dubbed Teller Syndrome, with all its downsides.