Here, finally, is the trailer for Brad Bird’s “Ray Gunn,” which is set world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on October 10.
Bird, who hasn’t directed a film in 8 years, bowed out of “Incredibles 3,” which he’s only writing, to make “Ray Gunn,” a sci-fi noir passion project he’s been trying to make for nearly 30 years. After years in limbo, Netflix stepped in as the only studio willing to back its hefty $150M+ budget.
That “Ray Gunn” is actually happening feels like a minor miracle. Apple walked away from its deal with Skydance in 2024 partly because “Ray Gunn” was too expensive. Netflix has since taken over, giving Bird’s decades-old vision a real shot at the screen. Can’t wait.
The voice cast is stacked. Sam Rockwell plays the cynical detective, a casting that Tom Waits (who voices the one-eyed alien sidekick Eye-ra) suggested before Bird could bring it up himself. “It was just serendipity,” Bird says. Scarlett Johansson plays the femme fatale singer Venus Nova, Bobby Cannavale is her gold-digging husband who hires Ray to spy on her, and Matt Berry voices a gangster named Slugsy. Bird voices two of Slugsy’s henchmen, Ben Burtt handles the sound design, and Michael Giacchino composed the score.
Why is this film so anticipated? Well, mostly because it comes from Brad Bird. Alongside names like Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Satoshi Kon, and Henry Selick, he's one of the few animation directors whose work transcends the genre and garners immense respect among cinephiles.
When Bird hits, he really hits. I’m talking that three-film run he had with “The Iron Giant,” “Ratatouille,” “The Incredibles,” and even his live-action outing, “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol,” titned out to be successful. Sure, he has a reputation for being uncompromising and difficult to collaborate with, but many great artists are. Bird is a true visionary — even most of us all prefer to forget “Tomorrowland.”
“Ray Gunn” will open in select theaters, including some 70mm screenings, on Friday, December 4 — which probably means a very select few screens —before streaming on Netflix on December 18.
Watch the official trailer below.
If you've read this column for a while, you know the drill: I spitball Cannes every month from now until April, updating the latest intel and trying to figure out what will be in competition, vying for the Palme d'Or.