After a mixed response from some critics, Christopher Nolan looks back at Interstellar's growing reputation as a modern classic: "It's incredibly rewarding"

Christopher Nolan's Interstellar debuted as one of the auteur director's most polarizing films, with critics and audiences alike mixed in their reception. Now, 12 years after its release, Nolan is looking back on how Interstellar's reputation has evolved, with many considering it an unsung modern classic.

"The film was received in a slightly ambiguous way," Nolan recalls in a Variety interview with actor Timothée Chalamet. "It was a little bit sniffy. Some of the responses were a bit sniffy from critics and a little from audiences. It made very good money around the world, particularly. There was a sense of people not quite being… it sounds egotistical to say they weren't ready… but they weren't ready for it from me."

Nolan doesn't hold any ill will against people who strongly disliked Interstellar, explaining that he'd rather viewers have an intense reaction to his films, positive or negative, than a lukewarm response.

"For years, people would recognize me somewhere and talk about Dark Knight. But over the last 10 years it’s become Interstellar. It's a wonderful thing. We re-released it two years ago and it made $5 million. It's amazing the success it's had," Nolan says. "It's incredibly rewarding. One of the strange things about directing is you immerse yourself in an obsessive way with a project. The worst response you ever get is when people say, 'Meh, it's okay. It’s fine.' You'd almost rather they felt something, either they passionately dislike it or passionately, obsessively fall in love with it."

Even in the time immediately after Interstellar's release, Nolan says he comforted himself through his experiences meeting people who found the film personally moving. Still, he recognizes that the movie may have been ahead of its time.

"When you make a film on that scale… every screening we did as we were finishing the film, there would be somebody who would be in tears and deeply moved by it. That's enough," Nolan said. "You can't also ask the culture to immediately embrace something. It's asking too much in a way. If you talk to individuals who've connected with the film in a really profound way, then you know it's there. You've done your job. The rest is about the zeitgeist and where you fit in with it."

Interstellar makes our list of the best sci-fi movies of all time. For more, make sure to stay up to date on the most exciting new movies you need to know about.