After setting himself in to star in and direct an adaptation of Lily Brooks-Dalton’s 2017 sci-fi novel Good Morning, Midnight, George Clooney has just made his first casting decision for the Netflix film with Deadline reporting that Felicity Jones (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) has signed on to the sci-fi film.
Good Morning, Midnight follows two characters in a post-apocalyptic world: an aging astronomer named Augustine (Clooney) who is trapped in the Arctic, and an astronaut named Sullivan on her way back to Earth. The official synopsis for the book is:
Augustine, a brilliant, aging astronomer, is consumed by the stars. For years he has lived in remote outposts, studying the sky for evidence of how the universe began. At his latest posting, in a research center in the Arctic, news of a catastrophic event arrives. The scientists are forced to evacuate, but Augustine stubbornly refuses to abandon his work. Shortly after the others have gone, Augustine discovers a mysterious child, Iris, and realizes that the airwaves have gone silent. They are alone.
At the same time, Mission Specialist Sullivan is aboard the Aether on its return flight from Jupiter. The astronauts are the first human beings to delve this deep into space, and Sully has made peace with the sacrifices required of her: a daughter left behind, a marriage ended. So far the journey has been a success. But when Mission Control falls inexplicably silent, Sully and her crewmates are forced to wonder if they will ever get home.
As Augustine and Sully each face an uncertain future against forbidding yet beautiful landscapes, their stories gradually intertwine in a profound and unexpected conclusion. In crystalline prose, Good Morning, Midnight poses the most important questions: What endures at the end of the world? How do we make sense of our lives? Lily Brooks-Dalton’s captivating debut is a meditation on the power of love and the bravery of the human heart.
Clooney will direct from a script by Mark L. Smith (Overlord).
Originally published July 10, 2019. Updated July 9, 2019.
