Twenty-twenty-four has already been a memorable year for silly, splashy rom-coms. Back in February, Camila Mendes brought us the art world-set Upgraded; in March came Lindsay Lohan’s Irish Wish; and next month will see the release of Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine’s much-buzzed-about The Idea of You. But now, another even starrier vehicle is poised to rival it: Fly Me to the Moon, a ’60s-set comedy which plays out against the backdrop of NASA’s historic Apollo 11 moon landing and centres on none other than Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum.
As you process the sheer hotness, here’s the log line: “Brought in to fix NASA’s public image, sparks fly in all directions as marketing maven Kelly Jones (Johansson) wreaks havoc on launch director Cole Davis’s (Tatum) already difficult task. When the White House deems the mission too important to fail, Jones is directed to stage a fake moon landing as back-up and the countdown truly begins.” So, we get Tatum as a smouldering scientist in a series of bicep-grazing knits and Johansson as a red-lipped vamp in Jackie O-style skirt suits? Count us in.
Behind the camera is Love, Simon’s Greg Berlanti, with Rose Gilroy penning the script and an impressive supporting cast which includes Woody Harrelson and Ray Romano alongside Nick Dillenburg, Anna Garcia, Jim Rash, Noah Robbins, Colin Woodell, Christian Zuber and Donald Elise Watkins.
What has us doing a NASA-style countdown to the approaching release date, however, is the natural chemistry between the two leads, which is evident in the first trailer which dropped on 8 April. It opens, of course, with a classic rom-com meet cute, after which Kelly and Cole find themselves working together – and butt heads in spectacular fashion. Cue big blowouts, an incredibly stressful launch, a supremely chaotic shoot for their fake moon landing, and eventually, the pair finally getting closer.
Look out for it in cinemas from 12 July, before it streams on Apple TV+ later this year – and prepare to swoon.
