The new movie is not a typical disaster film. It is a parody of the general public's indifference to science. The movie is about a comet on a collision course with Earth, but filmmakers intended it to be a commentary on climate change denial. It's reflective of the current COVID denial and mask/vaccine resistance, as well as our existing political polarization. It shows our preoccupation with social media. The movie can be depressing and frustrating.
The cast of "Don't Look Up" includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Jen Lawrence, and more. This is the most important film that she has ever made, according to the actor who plays the president.
The world premiere of "Don't Look Up" was held at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. Permission is granted for this photo to be used.
Adam McKay wanted the film to portray the science in a realistic way. Dr. Amy Mainzer was brought in to serve as the film's science consultant.
One of the world's leading scientists in asteroid detection and planetary defense is Mainzer. Mainzer oversaw the largest space-based asteroid-hunting project in history. Astronomers discovered a comet named after the mission in March of 2020.
Mainzer talked about the science in the movie "Don't Look Up."
When you got the call about working on a film about a comet, what did you think?
Amy Mainzer is fond of comets and asteroids in a script, as they are subjects close to her heart. It was fun to work on the project because I was happy to see that they are part of the cultural conversation through movies.
What were some of the tasks you did as a science advisor?
Mainzer helped to make the movie look realistic. This is a science fiction movie, since we don't know of any asteroid or comet that is on an impact trajectory to hit the Earth, or any that have a reasonable chance to do so in the near future. We are in sci-fi territory right off the bat. We wanted to anchor the movie in science realism so that viewers wouldn't have to suspend their faith. The team behind the film is very interested in science and its portrayal in movies is important for them, and that is why they have so much science in it.
The comet we helped design was scientifically accurate, but also fit the bill for the movie. The circumstances of the discovery were described, as well as how the scientists would react as they learned more about the object. To portray scientists as human beings, what are we like and how do we communicate science. Sometimes we succeed when we communicate and other times we have challenges.
The scientists who try to warn of a disaster weren't listened to. It felt a little too real that indifference felt like it was happening in our world. What did that feel like to you?
The movie has a lot to do with how we as a society react to science. Nancy is deeply steeped into trying to translate technical ideas into words that will be understood by everyone. Scientists sometimes use words in completely different ways than they do in everyday life.
When we use the word uncertainty in science, it means that there is a range of possible values within the measurements we make, and not that we don't know what we've measured! That is one example of a language barrier because words are used differently.
The movie is about how scientists try to bring what they learn about the world to everyone else so that they can make decisions based on the science. That is a very difficult thing to do. This movie is a comedy and hopefully people who see it will laugh a little at how all of us don't always succeed.
Is there a chance that the real NEOWISE mission gets a mention in the movie?
A movie shows the comet's trajectory. The credit is used by permission.
Mainzer did model the comet in the movie. The comet can come in at incredible speeds from the outer solar system. The comet in the movie was discovered in July of 2020 and there was a short time between discovery and approach to Earth.
Most of the large asteroids we have found are capable of causing global catastrophes. We know of more than 90 percent of the asteroids that are 1 km or larger, and none of them pose a hazard.
Long period comets are not the same as short period comets. They are not as common as asteroids. We don't know the percentage of that population. An object making a close approach to Earth is a non-zero chance, so we want to be knowledgeable and prepared. Track comets and asteroids with comprehensive surveys and look for them.
I spent a lot of time talking with the director about how our system is designed to be transparent. If the object is not something we already know about, the system is to make it public so that other astronomer can look at it.
Don't Look Up is a show starring Mark Rylance as Peter Isherwell, and actors like Meryl Streep and Jonah Hill. There is a person who is named cr. NIKOTAVERNISE/NETFLIX is a trademark of Nintendo. Permission was granted for this use.
The scientists are doing all they can to get the information out there, but the question is, how do people react? The process of getting knowledge out there is portrayed in the movie.
The scientists who make the discovery are people who don't do systematic surveys of comets for a living. The movie walks through the process of how they discovered the comet, how they determined its location, and how they communicated the results to the rest of the science community. The movie definitely takes some artistic license, but hopefully viewers will recognize the grains of real science.
Several big-name actors are in the film. When you heard who was in the cast, what did you think?
These actors are legends. They are incredibly talented, and they are all people who really feel they could play an important role in portraying scientists as human beings. They all care about science and its role in society and the idea that we should make decisions based on science in order to tackle problems as best we can. I spent a lot of time working with the cast on the dialogue because it was difficult to understand. To express how scientists feel when they aren't listened to.
I think the interaction between science and the arts is interesting. Science tells us what is happening with nature, but the arts deal with how we feel and process what we learn from science. The movie deals with how scientists and the general public react to what we are learning. The movie is about trying to change society to make science-based decisions and how to get people to listen to science.
There is a common thread in science denial that the government is hiding something. The scientists I talk to always say that if they found a dangerous object in space, they would shout it from the rooftops.
Mainzer: That is the case! When we learn something new and cool in science, it is like going on a great trip, and when you get home, you might bore everyone because you can't stop talking about it. Most scientists will keep talking about the things they learn. If other people know about it, they will love it too. That is part of the process that is explored in the movie.
What do you hope people take away from the movie?
Mainzer hopes the movie conveys that scientists are humans and that this process of science is a human process.
