One of our most anticipated upcoming movies Netflix has in the works is The Electric State which is being developed and directed by The Russo Brothers. Here’s a rundown on everything you need to know about the upcoming movie that stars Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt and is in production as of October 2022.
The Electric State has been years in the making before arriving on Netflix, so before we dig into what we know about the movie, here’s a quick rundown of the movie’s timeline so far:
- The book was published in December 2017
- The Russo Brothers won the options for the sci-fi novel in December 2017, with Andy Muschietti (It) eyed for the director’s seat, and Barbara Muschietti set to produce.
- The project was sold to Universal in December 2020 with Millie Bobby Brown starring, Russo Brothers directing, and Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely writing. It was due for a theatrical release.
- We exclusively reported on Netflix eying taking over the project in June 2022.
- Netflix officially gets the project in 2022, with an announcement in late June 2022.
AGBO with Anthony and Joe Russo
The Russo Brothers are directing the movie and are the duo behind the production company AGBO.
Joe and Anthony Russo are best known for their work on Marvel’s The Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. They’ve also directed several projects over the years, including the recently released Netflix action movie, The Gray Man.
The pair are working on at least 7 more projects for Netflix, including Extraction 2, Past Midnight, The Bluff, and The Gray Man 2.
Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely are writing the project and serve as executive producers. Sarah Finn and Tara Feldstein serve as casting directors on the project.
The movie is set to have a huge budget of $200 million, which matches the budget assigned to the Russo Brother’s previous big hitter for Netflix, The Gray Man.
What’s The Electric State on Netflix about?
The movie is an adaptation of the Simon Stålenhag book of the same name (although it was previously known as Passagen). Stålenhag is behind other well-known books, including Tales from the Loop and Things from the Flood.
Here’s a rundown of the story (courtesy of GoodReads), which is largely expected to be followed by the upcoming movie:
“In 1997, a runaway teenager and her yellow toy robot travel west through a strange USA. The ruins of gigantic battle drones litter the countryside, heaped together with the discarded trash of a high tech consumerist society in decline. As their car approaches the edge of the continent, the world outside the window seems to be unraveling ever faster—as if somewhere beyond the horizon, the hollow core of civilization has finally caved in.”
Who is in the cast for Netflix’s The Electric State?
Millie Bobby Brown – Picture: Getty Images
Millie Bobby Brown was attached to the project back in December 2020 and reportedly states that will continue to be the case for Netflix.
Brown is, of course, best known for her role on Netflix’s Stranger Things but also has worked on the Godzilla franchise and Enola Holmes which is returning. That’s in addition to some of the other upcoming projects the actress has at Netflix.
On August 11th, Netflix unveiled the full cast with actors and actresses that’ll feature and a couple that will lend their voices to the movie.
- Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy)
Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once, Crazy Rich Asians, The Witcher: Blood Origin)- Stanley Tucci (The Devil Wears Prada, The Hunger Games)
- Jason Alexander (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Seinfeld)
We should note that Michelle Yeoh is no longer part of the cast as of November 2022.
On the voice talent side:
- Brian Cox (Succession)
- Jenny Slate (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, Parks & Recreation)
Cast Grid for The Electric State (L-R: Chris Pratt, Michelle Yeoh, Stanley Tucci, Brian Cox, Jenny Slate, Jason Alexander) – Pictures: Getty Images
In November 2022, as part of a big Variety profile on AGBO, we got the news that four more big names had joined the cast:
- Giancarlo Esposito (The Mandalorian, Breaking Bad) will play Marshall, a “robotic drone manned by Esposito’s character remotely and tasked with hunting down the robot aiding Brown’s character on her quest.”
- Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once) will play a doctor. Replaced Michelle Yeoh.
- Anthony Mackie (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Black Mirror) will play a sentient robot who is the sidekick for Pratt’s character.
- Billy Bob Thornton (Fargo, The Gray Man, Goliath) will play a sentient robot from the civil war.
Pictures: Getty Images
Martin Klebba is also thought to be in The Electric State’s cast.
We also know that they’re casting the roles of Christopher and Young Michelle in early June 2022.
Christopher is described as a supporting 6-year-old boy with an active imagination and brilliant beyond his years.
Young Michelle is an 8-year-old fearless, smart, and caring girl with a strong bond with her young brother.
When will production start on The Electric State for Netflix?
When we first reported on the title, we outlined that production was eying to begin in October 2022 although in their initial announcement, Netflix only confirmed that production would get underway in fall 2022.
That seems to have been given an expanded filming schedule, with reports suggesting that filming will take place between mid-October 2022 and wrap sometime between February 2023 (according to ProductionWeekly) while others report the movie may not wrap until April 2023.
The movie is being filmed in Atlanta, Georgia.
We knew that filming was underway in early October 2022 through a couple of Tweets from the Russo Brothers and their production company. On October 4th, the Russo Brothers posted a picture of a script on set.
Day 1… #TheElectricState pic.twitter.com/xcpbm12F2N
— Russo Brothers (@Russo_Brothers) October 4, 2022
AGBO then tweeted on October 7th:
“AGBO team behind-the-scenes the first week of production: directors Joe & Anthony Russo, co-writers Stephen McFeely and Chris Markus, and producers Jake Aust and Mike Larocca”
The Electric State behind-the-scenes photos – Picture: AGBO
This production schedule outlined above means that The Gray Man 2 likely won’t begin production until the middle of next year and means that Stranger Things season 5 likely won’t get underway anytime soon.
The movie operates under the working/production title of “STORMWIND”.
Numerous onset photos of Millie Bobby Brown have leaked since the commencement of filming.
ACWORTH, GEORGIA – OCTOBER 24: Millie Bobby Brown seen on set for “Electric State” on October 24, 2022 in Acworth, Georgia. (Photo by MEGA/GC Images)
Picture: BackGrid / DailyMail.com
When will The Electric State release on Netflix?
It was revealed in a Variety interview with the Russo Brothers they were eying a 2024 Netflix release date for the movie. It’s unclear whether there will be a full or limited theatrical release for the title.
Picture: Simon Stålenhag
Are you looking forward to watching The Electric State on Netflix? Let us know in the comments.
