For the past few years, we’ve been hearing rumblings about an environmentally centred science fiction disaster film called Geostorm, starring Gerard Butler and directed by Independence Day and Stargate producer Dean Devlin. But it sounds like we hadn’t even heard the half of it.
What we first learned, back in 2014, was that it was about “a satellite designer trying to prevent disaster, after Earth’s climate-control satellites fail”. It would be Devlin’s directorial debut, after working closely with disaster-master Roland Emmerich for so long.
However, The Hollywood Reporter is now reporting the film, which has shifted release dates several times, just underwent a transformative set of reshoots. The reshoots encompassed two weeks, up to $US15 million ($20 million), and major changes including the addition and subtraction of characters and plotlines. Plus Jerry Bruckheimer, who wasn’t involved at the start, was brought on to produce.
Along with that comes more info on the movie itself. “Butler plays a man who heads into space to prevent climate-controlling satellites from creating a man-made storm of epic proportions. At the same time, he and his estranged brother learn of a plot to assassinate the president,” according to the story.
Where can we sign up?
Oddly, Devlin reportedly did not direct the reshoots himself. Danny Cannon, who has done recent work on Gotham, did. And while this all sounds like bad news, ultimately it may not be. This kind of investment means that the production company, in this case Skydance, has confidence in the film and what it thinks are answers to fix it. We really hope so. Because Armageddon with Gerald Butler sounds amazing, even if the track record isn’t quite there.
Read more about Geostorm in the original Hollywood Reporter story, linked below. It’s currently set for release in the US 20 October 2017.