Ad Astra

Ad Astra is a 2019 science fiction film produced, co-written, and directed by James Gray. Starring Brad Pitt (who also 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. Ad Astra premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 29, 2019, and was theatrically released in the United States on September 20, 2019, by 20th Century Fox. It received positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Pitt's performance, but was a box-office disappointment, grossing $135 million worldwide against an $80–100 million budget. At the 92nd Academy Awards, it was nominated for Best Sound Mixing.