Ridley Scott's 'The Dog Stars' Lands in Theatres This Week with Jacob Elordi Leading a Post-Pandemic Wasteland
Ridley Scott's latest film, The Dog Stars, arrives in theatres on 28 August 2026, with Jacob Elordi headlining a cast that includes Josh Brolin, Guy Pearce and Margaret Qualley (Deadline). The film is distributed by 20th Century Studios, which held its world premiere on 23 August 2026 (20th Century Studios, Facebook).
The story is set in 2035, years after a killer virus has wiped out most of humanity. Elordi plays Hig, a mechanic living on a deserted airstrip in Eerie, Colorado, scraping by in a world where almost everyone is gone (Deadline). Brolin plays Bangley, a military survivalist; Pearce plays Pops; Qualley plays Cima. The dog named Jasper, whose presence is hinted at by the title, functions as a supporting player in roughly the first half-hour of the film.
The screenplay is adapted from Peter Heller's 2012 novel of the same name. Mark L. Smith, whose credits include The Revenant, wrote the script; Christopher Wilkinson is credited as a co-writer (Apple TV). Scott, now 88, directs from a genre he has visited before — the vast, depopulated landscape — though the source material here is more intimate novel than sweeping epic.
One detail that may surprise anyone who has read Heller's book: the film was shot in Italy, with Italian locations standing in for the American Rockies (Deadline). The 20th Century Studios official page describes the film as a thriller "set in a world where survival is instinct but humanity is a choice" (20th Century Studios).
For Elordi, the role continues a rapid ascent from streaming heartthrob to leading man in major studio releases. For Scott, it adds another title to a filmography that now spans six decades. For audiences, it is a post-apocalyptic science fiction film arriving in the late-summer corridor — a slot studios have used for everything from breakout hits to quiet counter-programming.
The premiere on 23 August gave the film its first public screening; the wide release follows on 28 August (Hollywood Reporter). After that, the box-office numbers will tell their own story.
