- Title: Brad Pitt launches "touchy-feely" space drama in Hollywood
- Date: 19th September 2019
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 18, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF PRODUCER AND ACTOR BRAD PITT
- Embargoed: 3rd October 2019 04:26
- Keywords: Steve Tyler James Gray Ad Astra premiere producer Brad Pitt space Tommy Lee Jones Donald Sutherland Liv Tyler actor Ruth Negga
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES; UNIDENTIFIED FILMING LOCATIONS
- City: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES; UNIDENTIFIED FILMING LOCATIONS
- Country: USA
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Film
- Reuters ID: LVA001AXBP1SD
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Actor Brad Pitt stepped out at Hollywood's iconic Cinerama Dome on Wednesday (September 18) to present a special screening of 'Ad Astra' ahead of its release on September 20.
The actor not only starred in nearly every single shot of the space drama but also produced the film.
When asked how he selects the films he produces and stars in, Pitt told Reuters "Well it's different every time, you know. You know, I try not to choose something until I finish the last one and see what... I need to do a comedy next, do you know what I mean? After this one... This one was more challenging but it's always more rewarding in that way. It's more touchy-feely so there's more touchy-feely things to talk about so I'm only calling it out truthfully but I'm really pleased with it. I think it's a really beautiful, beautiful endeavor."
The 55-year-old actor plays Roy McBride who embarks on a space mission after a new threat causing disastrous power surges threatens Earth.
McBride sets off to find his pioneering astronaut father, played by Tommy Lee Jones, who went missing more than a decade earlier while on a mission to Neptune.
Set in the near future when mankind has set up living stations and research centers on the moon and Mars, the film follows McBride as he makes his way into the vast abyss through spectacular landscapes and empty space. However, the trip soon becomes a journey of self-discovery.
Shooting a lot of the movie to seem like it was zero-gravity turned out to be a headache for director James Gray. He said "You can do it digitally. Maybe that's the way I should have done it. Not that it's much easier on Sandra Bullock. They did it a lot digitally with computer graphics but apparently that was hard in a different way so maybe there's no easy way to do it. It mirrors the movie. You're not meant to be up there in space. Human beings aren't supposed to be there. We're not supposed to be doing zero gravity in movies, I don't know."
Pitt also talked about how Hollywood has changed since the #MeToo/Time's Up movement began almost two years ago. He said "What is going on which is positive is that we're recalibrating our relationships, behaviors and workplace and it's long overdue and needed and it's a good thing."
'Ad Astra' began its promotion three weeks ago at the Venice International Film Festival, where it featured in the main competition but didn't win any of the prestigious prizes.
(Production: Sandra Stojanovic, Rollo Ross) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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