Gareth Edwards' The Creator Release Date, Cast, Trailer, Plot And More Details

Back in 2010, you'd have been hard-pressed to name a filmmaker more clearly on the fast track to the A-list than Gareth Edwards. That was, after all, the year Edwards released his sci-fi marvel "Monsters." Regarded by some in critical circles as a dazzling, wildly ambitious feat of no-budget filmmaking, "Monsters" arrived as jam-packed with compelling ideas as it was with eye-popping spectacle. The film indeed became a modest but door-opening hit for Edwards, who was quickly helming tentpole properties like 2014's "Godzilla" and 2016's "Star Wars" prequel "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story."

Though the film proved a commercial and critical success, the behind-the-scenes struggles of "Rogue One" are legitimately the stuff of cautionary tale in Hollywood circles. The experience undoubtedly left a bad taste in Edwards' mouth, with the writer-director taking several years to line up his follow-up project. That project is soon to make its way to theaters, however, and will do so under the name "The Creator." Here's everything you need to know about Edwards' upcoming sci-fi spectacular. 

If you've been tracking the comings and goings of Gareth Edwards' long-awaited followup to "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," you likely know it was initially titled "True Love." The name change dropped when footage from the film was included in Disney's over-stuffed 2023 CinemaCon presentation. Notable name change aside, early reactions from the footage that was screened at CinemaCon had some tabbing "The Creator" as a potential under-the-radar hit when it premieres in theaters later this year.

To the delight of many, the film will re-team Edwards with his "Rogue One" cinematographer Greig Fraser, who won an Academy Award last year for shooting Denis Villeneuve's breathtaking epic "Dune." And given Fraser's recent track record (see also: "The Batman" and "The Mandalorian"), "The Creator" should deliver more than its fair share of eye candy when it finally does arrive in theaters on September 29, 2023.

When "The Creator" does make its way to theaters, it will do so fronting an impressive ensemble cast, including John David Washington. The actor's star has been in steady ascension in recent years, thanks in large part to lauded turns in Spike Lee's Oscar-winning "BlacKkKlansman," and Christopher Nolan's divisive but fascinating blockbuster "Tenet." Washington will be joined in the new film by fellow rising star Gemma Chan, who broke out in 2018's "Crazy Rich Asians" and has spent the last couple of years contributing to projects like Marvel's "Eternals," and "Don't Worry Darling." 

Heavy hitters Allison Janney and Ken Watanabe are also on the call sheet for "The Creator." Janney is, of course, an Academy Award winner for "I, Tonya" and someone who's become perhaps one of the best-respected actors in the game. Watanabe will need no introduction either, as he's delivered scene-stealing work in films like "The Last Samurai," "Batman Begins," and "Inception." As it happens, "The Creator" will also re-team Watanabe with Edwards, who directed him in 2014's "Godzilla." Rounding out the principal cast are lauded character actor Ralph Ineson of "The Witch," "The Wheel of Time" alum Amar Chadha-Patel, singer-songwriter Sturgill Simpson, and newcomer Madeleine Yuna Voyles.

We're always excited when an original sci-fi movie comes along. We're especially psyched when that movie sounds as awesome as "The Creator" does. So what will Gareth Edwards' latest film actually be about? Well, the movie takes place in the middle of war between humanity and artificial intelligence, and it centers on a man named Joshua, an ex-special ops agent (John David Washington), who — as the official plot synopsis tells us — is "grieving the disappearance of his wife (Gemma Chan)."

The summary goes on to say that Joshua "is recruited to hunt down and kill the Creator, the elusive architect of advanced AI who has developed a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war ... and mankind itself. Joshua and his team of elite operatives journey across enemy lines, into the dark heart of AI-occupied territory ... only to discover the world-ending weapon he's been instructed to destroy is an AI in the form of a young child."

From there, it looks as if Joshua will find himself in quite the predicament as he begins to bond with the child-like robot, going so far as to protect her from his fellow humans. We can't wait to see the sci-fi drama play out when the film hits theaters on September 29.

The first thing you notice in the trailer for "The Creator" is the next-level visuals, expertly blending the film's Thai shooting location with sci-fi structures and otherworldly cities. The worldbuilding here seems to be on par with the creativity of "Blade Runner," expertly mixing and matching elements of the real world with images straight from Gareth Edwards' imagination.

The next thing you notice is that this film is going to pack quite the wallop — both when it comes to the action spectacle and the dramatic impact. You know a movie is going to hit hard when your hero tells a little girl that he can't get to heaven because he's not a good person, only for that little girl to sadly say she won't be going either because she's not even human. The stakes are incredibly high in this war of man vs. machine, and each side seems to have a point, with humans wanting revenge against the AI for dropping a nuclear bomb on Los Angeles and the robots wanting their freedom. Will our hero carry out the hit on the AI's pint-sized super weapon, or will he take a stand against humankind?