Filming has officially started on The Entertainment System Is Down. This is the latest film from Ruben Östlund, the man behind Force Majeure and the Oscar-nominated Triangle of Sadness. This project is led by Keanu Reeves.
Said to be a satire and black comedy, The Entertainment System Is Down is set on the “Kangaroo Route” – this is the near 24-hour long-haul flight between London, UK, and Australia. Historically these contained one stopover somewhere like Singapore or Dubai. Most recently they became non-stop between Heathrow and Perth. This was the longest non-stop flight in the world until Singapore Airlines launched the Changai to JFK route.
In this story, the plane’s entertainment system breaks and the passengers are forced to contend with endless boredom.
Principal photography started yesterday in Budapest, but the big news is the sheer size of the cast. The announcement of filming also included the full list of those starring alongside Reeves.
Kirsten Dunst, Daniel Brühl, Nicholas Braun, Samantha Morton, and Tobias Menzies join Connor Swindells, Daniel Webber, Lindsay Duncan, Wayne Blair, Dan Wyllie, Allan Corduner, Sofia Tjelta Sydness, Erin Ainsworth, Myles Kamwendo, Sanna Sundqvist, Elle Piper, Tea Stjärne, and Swedish artist Benjamin Ingrosso.
Nobody knows quite what is in store. The movie will be shot in a real Boeing 747 over 70 days. Triangle Of Sadness featured sewage systems exploding and a near 15-minute sequence of ship passengers becoming seasick, complete with comical vomit slicks.
There is constant and ongoing talk about John Wick 5, and Reeves has recently completed some work on spin-off Ballerina. Before he straps on any more guns, he will have to contend with whatever Östlund throws at him.