Leonardo DiCaprio. Jennifer Lawrence. Meryl Streep. Cate Blanchett. Mark Rylance. Jonah Hill. Tyler Perry. Timothee Chalamet. Ariana Grande. Himesh Patel. Rob Morgan. Kid Cudi.

For a film with a mother of a cast, one doesn’t really need to look farther than Don’t Look Up. The science-fiction film with a strong strain of comedy running through it, tackles the climate change crisis through a satirical perspective, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence playing astronomers who race against time to warn the world about an approaching comet that will potentially destroy earth. The film, that will release in limited theatres in certain pockets of the world this Friday, will be globally available on Netflix from December 24.

This week, on a rainy night at 2am, I found myself attending a global virtual interaction live from New York, with the film’s director Adam McKay — the man behind films like The Big Short and Vice — and a part of the cast. Over 40 minutes, Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Jonah Hill, Tyler Perry, Scott Mescudi aka Kid Cudi and Adam McKay interacted with select media on their film that, quite honestly, has us at its cast.

Serious issue through a comic lens

“We wanted to deal with the serious issue of climate change crisis, which is undoubtedly one of the biggest threats to mankind, through a lighter perspective. You can feel urgency and loss while also having a sense of humour. And that is really the intention of this movie. All of us, given what we have been going through over the last few years, have at some point in time felt, ‘Aah, wouldn’t it be nice to laugh at some of this?’ We have had the thumping doomsday talk already, which is definitely legit, but I also felt that people should be allowed to laugh,” said Adam McKay, when asked why he chose to spotlight such an apocalyptic issue through the lens of comedy. “It’s also a great unifier. You can’t fake laughter,” he added.

Leonardo DiCaprio, who put on quite a bit of weight to play his geeky astronomer Randall Mindy, has been relentlessly working over the years to bring attention to climate change, with the issue even making it to his memorable Oscar-winning speech for Best Actor in The Wolf of Wall Street a few years ago. “For decades, I had been looking for a film that tackles this issue. Adam really cracked the code with this film. It takes artistes like this (gesturing to his co-actors) to change the narrative, create conversations and ultimately, contribute our bit,” said Leo, looking way younger than his 47 years.

What a cast!

Any conversation about Don’t Look Up has to invariably focus on its incredible cast, a dream for any director to put together. To put things in perspective, the principal cast of the film — give or take a few — has eight Oscar awards and a whopping 39 nominations between them, with Meryl Streep alone accounting for 21 of them.

“When I got in room with all these people — some of whom are geniuses and all of whom I respect — it was just amazing to laugh and think and together create something like this,” said Jonah Hill, almost mousy and unrecognisable in a hat. In Don’t Look Up, the actor plays Jason Orlean, who is not only President Janie Orlean’s (Meryl Streep) son but also her chief of staff.

Meryl Streep as Janie Orlean

Tyler Perry, who was honoured with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy Awards earlier this year, perhaps best summed up the emotions one felt in the middle of so many creative geniuses. “I came into this project quite nervous. The first day, the first moment was pretty nerve-wracking. But watching Adam, Leo, Cate (Blanchett), Ariana (Grande), who were so much in tune and so comfortable, kind of made me comfortable. I was only there for three days (of shoot), but it quickly became a family setting, and everyone embraced me,” said the actor, who will be seen in the role of a news anchor in the film, Cate Blanchett for company.

“What is special about this movie is that it made me realise how important

being collaborative is. We were in the middle of a pandemic, there was no vaccine at that time and we all had to wear masks and stay away from each other, but everyone did it and found a way to be creative. It was genuinely moving and touching,” added director Mckay.

Having fun & being creative

Interestingly, the comet in Don’t Look Up is named after Jennifer Lawrence’s character, Kate Dibiasky. “Well, at first it was quite exciting, till it became a catastrophe! And then your name becomes something that people are not happy about. At first, she was proud of it, and then resentment started building up as people started dreading ‘Comet Dibiasky’,” laughed Lawrence, pretty and pregnant in an embellished Dior gown.

Anyone who has watched Meryl Streep in the trailer of Don’t Look Up can gauge what a blast the veteran actor has in the film, playing a US president, who seems like a take-off on Sarah Palin. “Well, there are so many places to take inspiration from,” laughed the 72-year-old screen legend. “There are so many preposterous people around us who put themselves in public positions. It was kind of fun to put together this character whose idea of being a world leader is just about amassing power, money, more power and more money... and having beautiful hair and nails!” added Streep.

Rapper Kid Cudi, who acts in the film, has also collaborated with co-star and multiple Grammy winner Ariana Grande for a song called Just Look Up. “I met up with (composer) Nicholas Britell and I heard the song and I was like, ‘Holy shit! Do you even need me in the song?!’ I approached it with my flavour and made this song about a man spending time with the love of his life when the world is potentially coming to an end. Ariana is such a wonderful artiste and working with her was just staggering,” said Kid Cudi.

After The Wolf of Wall Street and a cameo in Django Unchained, this is the third time that Jonah Hill will be collaborating with Leo DiCaprio. And his senior co-star had only kind words to say about Hill. “This young man, this friend of mine, is an absolute genius. His ability to improvise and take control of a scene and have the narrative be shifted in the most amazing and colourful way is a sight to witness. I would love to work with him on a 100 more films,” smiled Leo. “I agree with everything that he said!” piped in Jonah, making the others laugh out loud. Here’s hoping the film is even half as fun as this!