Wes Anderson’s ‘Asteroid City’ Acquired by Focus Features; Full Cast and 1950s-Set Plot Revealed

Focus Features has partnered with Indian Paintbrush and acquired the worldwide rights to “Asteroid City,” the next film from director Wes Anderson, and the distributor has also unveiled the film’s full cast and official synopsis.

“Asteroid City” is a reunion between Anderson, Focus and his company Indian Paintbrush, as Focus last distributed “Moonrise Kingdom” way back in 2012. Universal International along with Focus will handle worldwide distribution on the film. No release date has been set.

“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 film is based on a story by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola.

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And while cast details have trickled out for months, Focus has also unveiled a lengthy cast list for “Asteroid City,” including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, 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, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan, Grace Edwards, Aristou Meehan, Sophia Lillis, Ethan Lee, Jeff Goldblum, Rita Wilson and many more.

That’s an impressive group of not just Anderson alums but also many big actors, including Hanks, Carell and Robbie, all working with the director for the first time.

The film is produced by Anderson and longtime collaborators Steven Rales, founder of Indian Paintbrush, and Jeremy Dawson.

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“We are beyond thrilled to be the global home for ‘Asteroid City,’ bringing Focus back in business with Wes and his producing partners,” Peter Kujawski, chairman of Focus Features, said in a statement. “Wes is a generational talent whose films delight audiences around the world; and we’re sure that the combination of his incredibly emotional story and vision combined with the insanely talented group of actors he has assembled, will mean that ‘Asteroid City’ will be no different.”

“Asteroid City” will be Anderson’s 11th feature film, and he’s also known for films such as “The Royal Tenenbaums,” “Rushmore,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel” and “The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou,” to name just a few. His last movie “The French Dispatch” from last year was released by Searchlight Pictures and made $46.3 million at the global box office.

Anderson is next meant to direct a Roald Dahl adaptation for Netflix called “The Wonderful World of Henry Sugar” that will star Benedict Cumberbatch, Ralph Fiennes, Dev Patel and Ben Kingsley

Anderson is represented by UTA and Jackoway Tyerman.

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