On November 6, 2023, Neill Blomkamp’s science fiction movie “They Found Us,” starring Joel Kinnaman, is slated to start filming in Australia. In the alien abduction thriller, a father and his daughter Kaylee go camping in the Utah wilderness in an effort to mend their strained relationship. Their lives, not just their romance, are put in jeopardy as they battle a humanoid beast to prevent being taken to an uncharted and horrific alien world, according to the logline.
The participation of American musicians in the production may be impacted because SAG-AFTRA has not granted a waiver allowing it to proceed with filming in Australia. Australia is a favourite location for science-fiction films because of its varied and alluring scenery. Some of the well-known science fiction films made in Australia include “The Matrix,” “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Alien: Covenant,” the Will Smith-starring “Independence Day,” Danny Boyle’s “Sunshine,” and Garth Davis’ “Foe.”
With the Best Picture Oscar-nominated film “District 9,” Blomkamp made his acting debut. Then he directed “Elysium,” starring Matt Damon. “Chappie,” starring Hugh Jackman, and “Demonic,” starring Carly Pope. His most recent film, “Gran Turismo,” is a sports biopic about a teenage store worker named Jann Mardenborough who aspires to be a professional racer. Mardenborough is a devotee of the Gran Turismo video games.
The movie’s screenplay was written by Jeremy Slater, who also co-created Marvel’s “Moon Knight” and Netflix’s superhero series “The Umbrella Academy.” In addition, he wrote or co-wrote the scripts for several upcoming movies, including “Mortal Kombat 2,” “Thread: An Insidious Tale,” and “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.” His other credits include the horror series “The Exorcist” on FOX, “Pet,” “Death Note,” and “Fantastic Four.”
The nameless father is the protagonist, and Kinnaman, well known for playing Stephen Holder in the crime drama “The Killing” on AMC/Netflix, plays him. His other notable roles include Rick Flag in “Suicide Squad,” Edward Baldwin in the science fiction series “For All Mankind,” and Alex Murphy/RoboCop in “RoboCop.” Recent roles for Kinnaman include Adam in HBO’s “In Treatment,” Erik Heller in “Hannah” on Prime Video, and more. In ‘Altered Carbon,’ Takeshi Kovacs plays Elias Ryker; in ‘House of Cards,’ Governor William “Will” Conway; in ‘Sympathy for the Devil,’ The Driver; etc.
AGC Studios, the production company behind “Locked Down,” “Voyagers,” “The Tinder Swindler,” and “The Perfect Find,” is providing all of the funding for the movie. The movie is produced by Wyck Godfrey and Marty Bowen for Temple Hill Entertainment, the studio behind “Smile,” “First Man,” and “The Maze Runner.”
