Billed as one of the Netflix movies to watch out for in the future, the Russo brothers’ The Electric State was in the news recently for reportedly having a $320 million budget.
Based on the 2018 sci-fi dystopian graphic novel of the same name by Simon StĂ¥lenhag, the film is expected to release in 2025. The movie was earlier expected to come out in 2024 but was a surprise exclusion from the streamer’s 2024 slate and currently doesn’t have a concrete release date.
Netflix regular Millie Bobby Brown headlines the cast along with Chris Pratt. Joining them is an impressive cast of Devyn Dalton, Ke Huy Quan, Stanley Tucci, Terry Notary, Martin Klebba, and Patti Harrison. The film also has multiple big-name actors attached to it as a part of its voice cast: Brian Cox, Jenny Slate, Giancarlo Esposito, Anthony Mackie, and Billy Bob Thornton. Michelle Yeoh was attached to the project at one point but had to exit due to other commitments.
The film is set in post-apocalyptic mid-1990s America, where a civil war between humans and robots creates a tension-filled environment with mankind living with a mix of amiable and dangerous droids. Left to fend for herself after her parents’ deaths and the disappearance of her younger brother, Michelle (Brown), a teenage girl, decides to traverse the country in a bid to find her sibling. On her adventurous but danger-filled journey, she meets a smuggler (Pratt) and his robot (Mackie), who join her on her quest. Esposito stars as the villainous robot Marshall, who will go to any lengths to prevent Michelle from reuniting with her brother.
The Russo brothers acquired the rights to StĂ¥lenhag’s book in 2017, with It collaborators Andy Muschietti and Barbara Muschietti set to direct and produce, respectively. The project then went into the hands of Universal in 2020, with Netflix taking over in 2022. The reason why The Electric State was anticipated to release in 2024 was because filming had wrapped in February 2023, but the 2024 reshoots could have potentially pushed the release window further.
