Cast your mind back to the advent of Independence Day: Resurgence. In Roland Emmerich’s long-in-development sequel, a fleet of alien ships entered Earth’s atmosphere, leading to a barrage of CGI chaos the likes of which we’ve never seen. Alas, ID2 struggled to capture the spirit of its 1996 predecessor, resulting in a largely forgettable affair.
And though it was by no means the only issue, painting the invading extra-terrestrials as one-dimensional antagonists proved to be a little trite. It led to eye-popping spectacle at the expense of nuance, but thankfully, a welcome tonic is on the horizon in the form of Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival.
Set during the formative days of an alien invasion, Arrival follows Amy Adams as expert linguist Dr. Louise Banks, who becomes a focal point in the government’s plans to establish first contact with the reticent aliens. To date, much of the film’s marketing campaign has revolved around Adams’ lead – and rightfully so – but today, Collider has unearthed a new featurette that instead draws attention to her confidant, Jeremy Renner’s mathematician Ian Donnelly.
Embedded below, the snippet gives us a better understanding of his character and, specifically, what he brings to the cause. Forest Whitaker and Michael Stuhlbarg also star, with Ted Chiang’s “Story of Your Life” serving as a jumping-off point for the film’s intriguing storyline.
Arrival is pegged for launch on November 11. In his TIFF review, our own Matt Donato wrote that Denis Villeneuve’s brainy pic “challenges viewers to a brainier sci-fi conundrum than they’re used to, which makes for an intellectual breath of fresh air.” You can find that featurette spotlighting Renner’s mathematician down below.
