Focus Features has bought Wes Anderson’s “Asteroid City” for domestic distribution. A plot synopsis has also been revealed and it sounds delightfully Anderson-esque:
ASTEROID CITY is a poetic meditation on the meaning of life. It tells the story of a fictional American desert town circa 1955 and its Junior Stargazer convention, which brings together students and parents from across the country for scholarly competition, rest/recreation, comedy, drama, romance, and more.
The star-studded cast features Tom Hanks and Margot Robbie in their Anderson film debuts, plus Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Ed Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan, Grace Edwards, Aristou Meehan, Sophia Lillis, Ethan Lee, Jeff Goldblum and Rita Wilson.
How many of these are we thinking will be cameos?
Oh, and where’s Bill Murray? Did his scenes get snipped after the Keke Palmer #MeToo incident? Murray was livestreamed at the last NYFF alongside Anderson, Adrian Brody, and others from the set of “Asteroid City”. Not only that, he’s the one who revealed the title of the film during a BFI Q&A last November.
“Asteroid City,” which wrapped production last October, is sitting out the year. No word yet on the reasons why, but, according to a well-informed festival programmer, it’s aim is for a 2023 release.
Remember when, back in August, we learned “The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth” would be playing in only around 350 U.S. theaters, "maybe fewer"? Well, it's fewer. A lot fewer.