1st 'Ad Astra' Trailer Hints at Interplanetary Action with Brad Pitt

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Prepare to have our place in the cosmos challenged.

A stunning first trailer for Brad Pitt's otherworldly adventure "Ad Astra" has finally been released, teasing a frantic race through the depths of space. 

And…did we just see a space elevator?! 

Pitt plays Roy McBride, an astronaut who travels to the outer edges of the solar system to find his missing father (Tommy Lee Jones) and unravel a mystery that threatens the survival of our planet. The trailer puts the movie's release on September 20.

Astronaut Brad Pitt will uncover secrets that challenge the nature of human existence in "Ad Astra." (Image credit: 20th Century Fox)

According to the synopsis, his journey will uncover secrets that challenge the nature of human existence and our place in the cosmos.

Director James Gray told Collider that the film will feature "the most realistic depiction of space travel that's been put in a movie." He's also described it as "Sorta like, if you got 'Apocalypse Now' and '2001' in a giant mash-up and you put a little [Joseph] Conrad in there."

"Ad Astra" means "to the stars" in Latin. It's often used as a shorthand for "Ad Astra per Aspera" (To the stars through difficulties).

The movie also stars Liv Tyler, Donald Sutherland and Ruth Negga and will be released on Sept. 20, after a delay because of Disney's buyout of Fox.

Something called the "surge" is threatening all life on Earth in "Ad Astra," and it's somehow linked to a mission that disappeared 16 years ago. (Image credit: 20th Century Fox)

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Scott Snowden
Scott Snowden

When Scott's application to the NASA astronaut training program was turned down, he was naturally upset...as any 6-year-old boy would be. He chose instead to write as much as he possibly could about science, technology and space exploration. He graduated from The University of Coventry and received his training on Fleet Street in London. He still hopes to be the first journalist in space.