Back to All News
Don't Look Up': Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio and Adam McKay on How Netflix's New All-Star Comedy Came TogetherPlay Video
Play Video
Netflix Staff
Entertainment
16 November 2021
GlobalUnited States
What if you discovered that a comet was on a collision course with Earth? And what if no one really seemed to care? That's the premise of Don't Look Up, the upcoming Netflix comedy written and directed by Academy Award winner Adam McKay. The film uses subversive humor to reflect and underscore some of the most absurd elements of the current moment we live in, and stars Oscar winners Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio as two low-level astronomers who must go on a giant media tour to warn mankind of an approaching comet that will destroy planet Earth. Timed to the film's official trailer premiere today, we talked with Lawrence, DiCaprio and McKay about the inspiration for the film, improvising on set, and the all-star cast.
What were some of the sources of inspiration?
Adam McKay: I knew the movie needed to be laugh-out-loud funny, not just clever or wry, so I turned to the all-time greats. Comedies like Office Space and Idiocracy that really capture the weird way we live in the modern world. (Both of those Mike Judge films were north stars for me.) But also movies like Dr. Strangelove, Network, and Wag the Dog. Ive always been intrigued with the idea of finding a way to encapsulate these giant looming threats that we're faced with in this world, but to show it in a way that has a bit of fun with it.
What drew you to the film?
Jennifer Lawrence: I've always wanted to work with Adam McKay, I'm a huge fan. When I read the script, I thought it was genius. It's maybe the funniest script I've ever read, and I thought it was such a poignant way to get such an important point across, that people don't need to be fighting each other over science. We need to be fighting this collective war to save humanity together.
Leonardo DiCaprio: Adam McKay is a director that I'd been wanting to work with for a long time. His ability to combine comedy with incredibly pertinent issues, especially with this film having the undertone of the climate crisis, so it was a unique opportunity to work with somebody that really allowed all of us as actors to collaborate and improvise. Adam is somebody that values everyone's opinion and allows you as an actor to take a scene in any direction that you see fit.
What was your preparation process like?
Lawrence: I spoke to a brilliant astronomer named Amy Mainzer. I was mostly curious about what the world for a female astronomer looks like since they're so outnumbered. That helped shape Kate's personality, how she dresses, how she carries herself. I tried to learn about astronomy as well, but I don't know how much of it I retained. Leo, of course, learned all of it.
DiCaprio: Amy Mainzer is our consultant and astronomer whom I had hundreds of conversations with. She helped me incredibly in playing Dr. Randall Mindy just to be able to articulate this science and basically almost gave me a Carl Sagan-like download on what astronomy is, what it means to be an astronomer, what you look for and the importance of what that means for my character. She was probably one of the most helpful elements to my character that I could've imagined.
McKay: Amy was incredible. She was really a major ingredient in this movie. She was constantly fact-checking the script. Honestly, I cant imagine us being able to pull it off without her. And, and on top of it all, she had a great sense of humor. I just heard the other day she saw the movie, and she was so excited by it. And in a way, that may be the reaction I value the most. Because scientists these days have been under such attack. And the idea that she felt heard seeing the movie was really exciting for me.
What was it like working with Adam McKay?
Lawrence: He's a comedy writer so he's just coming up with hilarious material as we're going. It was so fun to get pitched one hilarious line after another.
DiCaprio: I've been a fan of his work, gosh, ever since Anchorman and Step Brothers. Then right up to Vice and seeing this transition in how he's taken on these incredibly complex political issues, but retained this dark, shrewd, intelligent comedic undertone to a lot of them. This film is, in a lot of ways, the full fruition of what he's been able to mend together thematically and tonally in his movies. Not having had a lot of experience in that space, Adam really helped guide me through balancing the comedic elements in this role.
Did you improvise during any of your specific scenes?
Lawrence: There was a lot of improv in the film. Adam made us feel very free to move with whatever you're feeling.
DiCaprio: Adam gave us an interesting opportunity to try anything. And so, right off the bat, Jen and I really developed our characters on camera. It was done through a lot of different improv. There were so many different actors who came in and were given free rein to really delve into their characters. It was incredible to work alongside such amazing talent.
McKay: They all have a really great sense of the emotional line of their character. Because one of the big ways youll see people go wrong with improv is theyll suddenly start doing things that arent consistent with their character. Theyll start doing things that are just so far afield of the tone of the script. And the great thing with actors like this is they just have a built-in compass for that. They never shattered the reality. So all the actors we had in this film, even though some people may think of some of them as very dramatic, they all were just great with improvising. They jumped right in the water and started swimming.
Can you give any e
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/01/2026
28 01 2026 - Media release Screen Australia refreshes Market & Audience approach...
28/01/2026
Boston Conservatory Orchestra Premieres a New Piano Concerto by Peter and Leonar...
27/01/2026
Click for Japanese version
Tokyo, Japan - January 27, 2026 - Akamai Technolo...
27/01/2026
L-R: Jonathan Cuchacovich, Sonia Kennebeck, Alan Fischer, Daeil Kim, Andrew Sta...
27/01/2026
Today, Spotify is proud to support our partner Backline, an industry-leading men...
27/01/2026
With nearly 29 million monthly listeners and clear momentum on Spotify, Net n Ve...
27/01/2026
January 14, 2026
We are proud to share that 25 Ontario, First Gulf's commercial project located just two minutes from our head office, has been recognized ...
27/01/2026
January 22, 2026
First Gulf is excited to share that a full-building lease has been secured at 625 Bronte Rd in Oakville, part of Bronte Station Business Park,...
27/01/2026
January 23, 2026
First Gulf continues to demonstrate its commitment to high-performance, sustainable real estate with 351 King Street East achieving BOMA BEST ...
27/01/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
27/01/2026
Nielsen will continue to drive growth and provide local audience measurement
in...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Amagi Media Labs Limited, the only cloud-native SaaS provider offering end-to-end solutions across live production, content preparation, distribution, and monet...
27/01/2026
Miri Technologies Inc. today unveiled its V410 live 4K video encoder/decoder for streaming, IP-based production workflows and AV-over-IP distribution. Designed ...
27/01/2026
The Paul E. Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell in Massachusetts has chosen Ikegami cameras for incorporation into its broadcast-quality television production facili...
27/01/2026
SipRadius, specialists in secure, low latency media transport, will show the pro AV community its end-to-end solution for high quality content distribution and ...
27/01/2026
Hiltron will highlight the fruits of its 45-plus years of experience in satellite communications system integration and product development at the annual GovSat...
27/01/2026
Klvr will demonstrate how its Charger Pro solution is delivering cost reduction and performance benefits for live entertainment and pro AV markets at ISE 2026 (...
27/01/2026
Amino, a global media technology leader in enterprise video and digital signage, today announced that its Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2026 booth (4N700) wil...
27/01/2026
ANI, India's leading news agency and a major content provider across the Asia Pacific region, today announced a significant expansion of its long standing p...
27/01/2026
Independent analysis confirms faster encoding, lower CPU usage, and improved perceptual quality compared to CBR and CRF
VisualOn, a leader in multimedia playba...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
27/01/2026
New agreement for uninterrupted UHF connectivity for Australian Defence Force through 2033, With Options Extending to 2041
Luxembourg, January 13, 2026 - Satel...
27/01/2026
Tuesday 27 January 2026
SNL UK creative team expands as Pauli Lovejoy, Annie Ha...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
When It Feels Real, Is It Still a Lie? The Art of Sarah' ...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
That Night premiering on Netflix March 13
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
DOWNLOAD THE KEY ART
DOWNLO...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Revealed the Future of Mexican Stories Coming in 2026
Entertainment
27 January 2026
GlobalMexico
Link copied to clipboard
Among t...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
Four New Japan Titles Announced for 2026: Viral Hit', On...
27/01/2026
Back to All News
What's Next on Netflix from Japan: Expanding the Possibili...
27/01/2026
AI, graphics and virtual software power new production capabilities...
27/01/2026
RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to support a dynamic programme of cultural events taking place across Ireland this February. From visual art, film, music, ...
26/01/2026
Music videos play a huge part in how fans connect with their favorite songs, but...
26/01/2026
NAIDOC launches 2026 theme 50 Years of Deadly , marks major milestone
25 January, 2026
Media releases
The National NAIDOC Committee has today unveiled its...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
26/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Pinterest
Bluesky
Email...
Back to All News
