Tomorrowland (film)

''Tomorrowland'' (also known as ''Project T'' in some regions and subtitled ''A World Beyond'' in some other regions) is a 2015 American science fiction film directed by Brad Bird, with a screenplay by Bird and Damon Lindelof, based on a story by Bird, Lindelof, and Jeff Jensen. It stars George Clooney, Hugh Laurie, Britt Robertson, Raffey Cassidy, Tim McGraw, Kathryn Hahn, and Keegan-Michael Key. In the film, a disillusioned genius inventor (Clooney) and a teenage science enthusiast (Robertson) embark to an intriguing alternate dimension known as "Tomorrowland," where their actions directly affect their own world.

Walt Disney Pictures originally announced the film in June 2011 under the working title ''1952'', and later retitled it to ''Tomorrowland'', after the futuristic themed land found at Disney theme parks. In drafting their story, Bird and Lindelof took inspiration from the progressive cultural movements of the Space Age, as well as Walt Disney's optimistic philosophy of the future, notably his conceptual vision for the planned community known as EPCOT. Principal photography began in August 2013, with scenes shot at multiple locales in five countries.

''Tomorrowland'' was released in conventional and IMAX formats by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures on May 22, 2015. Upon its release, the film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its original premise, performances, action sequences, visual effects, and themes, but felt that it lacked focus on the titular world and criticized the screenplay. The film grossed $209 million and finished up being a commercial failure worldwide against a total production and marketing cost of $280 million, losing Disney $120–150 million, though these figures do not take into account revenue from home media, merchandising, and syndication.

Plot

In 1964, a young boy named Frank Walker attends the 1964 New York World's Fair to sell his prototype jet pack, but is rejected, as it does not work. Frank is approached by a young girl, Athena, who hands him an orange lapel pin with a blue "T" embossed on it, telling him to follow her onto Walt Disney's "It's a Small World" attraction at the Fair's Pepsi-Cola Pavilion. Frank obeys and sneaks onto the ride, where the pin is scanned by a laser, and he is transported to Tomorrowland, a futuristic cityscape, where advanced robots fix his jetpack, allowing him to fly and join the secretive world.

In the present day, optimistic teenager Casey Newton repeatedly sabotages the planned demolition of a NASA launch site in Florida. Her father, Eddie, is a NASA engineer, but faces losing his job. Casey is eventually caught and arrested. At the police station, she finds a pin in her belongings. While touching it, the pin transports her to Tomorrowland. Her adventure is cut short when the pin's battery runs out.

With help from her younger brother Nate, Casey finds a Houston memorabilia store related to the pin. The owners attack her when she is unable to divulge where she got the pin, insisting that Casey knows about a "little girl". Athena bursts in and defeats the owners, actually Audio-Animatronics, who self-destruct, blowing apart the shop. After Casey and Athena steal a car, Athena reveals she is an animatronic, purposed to find and recruit people who fit the ideals of Tomorrowland. Athena drops Casey off outside an adult Frank's house in Pittsfield, New York.

The reclusive, cynical Frank declines Casey's request to take her to Tomorrowland, having been banished from it years ago. Inside Frank's house, Casey finds a probability counter marking the end of the world. Frank warns her that the future is doomed, but she disagrees, thus lowering the counter's probability. Animatronic assassins arrive to kill Casey, but she and Frank escape, meeting Athena in the woods outside Frank's house. Frank resents Athena for lying to him about her true nature, but reluctantly agrees to help them get to Tomorrowland.

Using a teleportation device, the trio travel to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Frank explains that Gustave Eiffel, Jules Verne, Nikola Tesla