Asteroid City

Set in a tiny American desert town in the 1950s, this romantic comedy-drama with a sci-fi twist is told in an anthology format, following three overlapping stories as the town hosts a space convention. But the arrival of an alien forces the government to quarantine Asteroid City, throwing the characters’ lives into chaos.

Like most Anderson films, complicated family dynamics are at the heart of Asteroid City. The lead character is widowed dad-of-four Augie Steenbeck (played by Jason Schwartzman), who gets stranded in the remote town with his four children. He urges his wealthy father-in-law Stanley (Tom Hanks) to help look after the kids, and grows close to famous actress Midge Campbell (Scarlett Johansson), who is also stuck in town with her teenage daughter.

The long-awaited project is the filmmaker’s latest ensemble period piece and his 11th feature film, which he writes, directs, and co-produces, from a story written by himself and Roman Coppola.

The film features Anderson’s most star-studded cast of his career so far, with Tom Hanks, Margot Robbie, Scarlett Johansson and Steve Carrell leading the line-up of A-listers. Other familiar faces include Stranger Things’ Maya Hawke, Sleepless in Seattle’s Rita Wilson, and Hong Chau, fresh from her Oscar-nominated role in The Whale. Many of the director’s past collaborators are back for Asteroid City, including Jason Schwartzman, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Willem Dafoe, Adrien Brody and Jeff Goldblum. There are also cameos from Jarvis Cocker, Matt Dillon, Rupert Friend and Seu Jorge.