Summer 2015’a Tomorrowland movie is part of Disney’s continuing effort to translate its iconic theme-park attractions to the big screen, but precious few details have been released up to this point about the sci-fi film directed by Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Up) and co-written by Lost and Star Trek Into Darkness scribe Damon Lindelof. Some of the mystery was cleared up, however, in a recent interview that also featured some of the first images from the film.
“What Hogwarts is to magic, Tomorrowland is to science: They are both easy to find if you are a wizard and very difficult to find if you’re a Muggle,” Lindelof told Entertainment Weekly.
The film reportedly follows a teenager played by Britt Robertson (The First Time) who accidentally discovers a secret, futuristic place known as “Tomorrowland” and teams up to explore it with a former boy genius played by George Clooney whose failings have caused him to retreat from the outside world. Robertson’s character, Casey Newton, happens upon Tomorrowland when she finds a mysterious pin that can transport her to this strange place that exists outside the traditional boundaries of perceived space and time.
“There is a piece of technology in this pin, it’s the kind of old-school pin you would wear on your lapel, and when you make physical contact with it, you have the illusion of being physically transported to another world, and that’s how Casey gets her first glimpse of Tomorrowland,” revealed Lindelof, who continued to frame the story as the sci-fi equivalent to the magic-fueled Harry Potter series. “She is a Muggle who accidentally wanders across Platform 9 ¾ and sees something she probably shouldn’t have.”
“At first when she experiences this thing, she’s not sure if it’s real or not,” explained Bird. “It’s kind of like being hit by a dream and not sure whether the dream was a dream or real.”
Lindelof also indicated that the film will present a connection between Walt Disney himself and the mysteries of Tomorrowland.
“Walt Disney is not a character in our movie, but he is referenced as having some involvement in this mysterious place called Tomorrowland, as a huge futurist and aficionado of space travel, rocketry, cities of the future, and space travel,” said Lindelof.
Tomorrowland hits theaters May 22, 2015. You can see the first official images at Entertainment Weekly.
