After the production backup caused by COVID last year, this awards season is more loaded than any in recent memory. With so many exciting projects emerging every week, some will inevitably arrive with little to no hype. But that won’t be the case for Netflix‘s sci-fi black comedy “Don’t Look Up,” which spotlights three of the biggest names in the business after a period of inactivity: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, and writer/director Adam McKay.
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According to the official synopsis, “the film tells the story of two low-level astronomers who go on a giant media tour to warn humanity of an approaching comet that will destroy planet Earth.” A premise this pitch black doesn’t traditionally attract A-list talent. Still, McKay went to great lengths to land his co-leads, reportedly writing one role specifically for Lawrence while massaging the script for months to assuage the famously selective DiCaprio.
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This is McKay’s first feature since 2018’s acidic Dick Cheney biopic “Vice,” which earned multiple Oscar nominations and solidified the writer/director’s pivot from goofy-minded Will Ferrell whisperer (“Anchorman,” “Step Brothers”) to the acid-tongued auteur of sociopolitical satire he’s become. Fittingly enough, story credit for “Don’t Look Up” also went to noted political commentator and spokesperson David Sirota of The Guardian and Jacobin. Frequent Damien Chazelle collaborator Linus Sandgren handled the cinematography amid a big year. He also shot the highly anticipated James Bond film “No Time to Die.”
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Meanwhile, the supporting cast reads like a list of presenters at the Academy Awards; a Who’s Who of cultural influencers both past and present, including Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Rob Morgan, Tyler Perry, Jonah Hill, Timothée Chalamet, Kid Cudi, Ariana Grande, Matthew Perry, Gina Gershon, Michael Chiklis, and Chris Evans.
“Don’t Look Up” is scheduled to premiere in theaters on December 10 before hitting Netflix on December 24. Watch the first clip from the movie below.