Ad Astra (2019)
Ad Astra is a 2019 American psychological science fiction adventure drama film co-produced, co-written, and directed by James Gray. Starring Brad Pitt (who also co-produced), Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler, and Donald Sutherland, it follows an astronaut who ventures into space in search of his lost father, whose obsessive quest to discover intelligent alien life at all costs threatens the Solar System and all life on Earth. The project was announced in early 2016, with Gray saying he wanted to feature “the most realistic depiction of space travel that’s been put in a movie”. Pitt signed on to star in April 2017 and the rest of the cast joined later that year. Filming began around Los Angeles that August, lasting through October.
Plot:
In the late 21st century, the Solar System is being struck by mysterious power surges, threatening all human life. Major Roy McBride, son of presumed-dead astronaut H. Clifford McBride is informed by U.S. Space Command (SpaceCom) that the surges have been traced to the “Lima Project”, created 29 years earlier under Clifford’s leadership to search the galaxy for intelligent life. Nothing has been heard from the Lima crew since reaching Neptune 16 years ago. Told his father may be alive, Roy agrees to travel to Mars from where he can attempt to establish communication with him. Roy is joined by Colonel Pruitt, his father’s old associate. Roy, acclaimed for his ability to remain calm under extreme pressure, shows little emotional reaction to his father possibly being alive.
Production:
Director James Gray first confirmed his plans to write and direct Ad Astra on May 12, 2016, during the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. In April 2017, while promoting The Lost City of Z, Gray compared the story of Ad Astra to Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. Gray also mentioned that he intended for the film to feature “the most realistic depiction of space travel that’s been put in a movie and to basically say, ‘Space is awfully hostile to us'”. Gray also confirmed that filming for Ad Astra would commence on July 17, 2017. On April 10, 2017, Gray confirmed that Brad Pitt would star in Ad Astra. In June, Tommy Lee Jones joined the cast to portray Pitt’s lost father. In August, Ruth Negga, John Finn, and Donald Sutherland joined the cast.RELATED:
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Principal photography on the film began in mid-August 2017 in Santa Clarita, California, lasting 60 days. Following poor initial test screenings, reshoots were conducted (although Pitt was unavailable), increasing the production budget from $80 million to over $100 million. Charlie Kaufman provided an uncredited rewrite of the voice-over dialogue in the film. Gray did not have control over the film’s final cut, which he told The Hollywood Reporter was “as painful a thing as I have experienced outside the death of a loved one.