When 2024 arrived, I didn't have "Adam Sandler in a Netflix sci-fi movie with a telepathic alien spider" on my bingo card, but here we are.
That's right, a new Sandler-led film – Spaceman – talks flight on Netflix on March 1, and the streaming giant has released an official trailer for the cosmically surreal flick that elaborates on its intimate yet uneasy plot.
Before I get into Spaceman's story, you'll want to watch the new teaser. Check it out below – but arachnophobes beware. I'm not joking about Sandler's character conversing with a near-human-sized spider, so turn back now if you're not a fan of the eight-legged critters.
Yes, this is one of those new Netflix movies that anyone with a fear of spiders might want to give a wide berth to. But hey, the creature doesn't seem all that bad, especially if it's willing to help Sandler's increasingly unstable astronaut work through his personal issues.
But what are said problems that are causing Jakub – that'll be the individual Sandler is playing – to seemingly be losing his mind? Spaceman's plot synopsis reveals more.
"Six months into a solitary research mission to the edge of the solar system, an astronaut, Jakub (Sandler), realizes that the marriage he left behind might not be waiting for him when he returns to Earth," it reads.
"Desperate to fix things with his wife, Lenka (Carey Mulligan [Maestro]), he is helped by a mysterious creature from the beginning of time he finds hiding in the bowels of his ship. Hanuš (voiced by Paul Dano (The Batman)) works with Jakub to make sense of what went wrong before it is too late."
To infinity and beyond
This isn't the first footage we've seen from the forthcoming film. In December 2023, Netflix revealed a 30-second teaser for Sandler's new movie that, at the time, we suggested to look like an eerie Interstellar. I'm still standing by that claim because, as much as I want Hanuš to be a benevolent being, there's just something off-putting about a telepathic alien spider that somehow works its way onto Jakub's spacefaring vessel. I'm no arachnid hater, but this is one creepy-crawly who, well, gives me the creeps.
Based on Jaroslav Kalfař's 2017 novel Spaceman of Bohemia, Spaceman's script has been penned by first-time movie scribe Colby Day. Johan Renck, who directed five episodes of 2019's Chernobyl – one of the best Max shows, and which is equal parts harrowing and devastating – is in the filmmaking chair for Spaceman. Rounding out the cast on this film are Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory), Lena Olin (Hunters), and Isabella Rossellini (Julia).
With Sandler emerging as a bonafide movie star, following years of featuring in numerous comedies of varying quality, Spaceman seems like it'll be a sure-fire hit for the world's best streaming service. Add in its retrofuturistic aesthetic, talented supporting cast, slightly unnerving tonality, and likely awe-inspiring visuals, and I'm even more confident that it'll successfully navigate its way onto our best Netflix movies list.
Spaceman will have lift off on Netflix on Friday, March 1.
