George Clooney Directed And Starred In A $100 Million Sci-Fi Movie You May Have Never Heard Of

While George Clooney's big break came with a television medical drama, he's now better known for his work on the silver screen, both in front of and behind the camera. He's been in heist films like "Ocean's Eleven," dramas like "The Descendants," and even science fiction flicks like "Gravity." One of his higher budget sci-fi movies, Clooney directed, produced, and starred in "The Midnight Sky," but the project faded into obscurity after poor critic reviews. 

The 2020 Netflix film follows the actor as Augustine Lofthouse, a man trying to find habitable planets for humans after Earth has been contaminated by radiation. Despite a strong cast, including Felicity Jones, Kyle Chandler, and David Oyelowo, and an interesting exploration of loneliness, "The Midnight Sky" didn't win over audiences or critics. The film has just a 27% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, and critics were a bit more forgiving with a 50%. Despite such a poor response critically, the movie was actually nominated for an Academy Award for best visual effects, but, in the end, it did not snag that statuette.

The actor and director is the high point of the flick for many. "Clooney's hollowed-out performance – truly, he seems exhausted by life and disgusted by humanity, with a notable exception – is effective," Bill Goodykoontz wrote for the Arizona Republic, highlighting how well the actor portrays a man who is at wit's end with life as a terminally ill person on a dying planet. And, like the voters for the Academy, industry reviews enjoy the visual effects, with words like "elegant" and "stunning" thrown around.

While critics enjoyed Clooney's performance, they don't think the project was entirely effective due to a tonal mismatch in the themes and how they're presented. In a review for Rolling Stone, K. Austin Collins describes it as "a good example of a movie that sells itself short by trying to be one thing — serious, heavy, emotional — when, by all available indicators, it should be more of a thriller." However, this shouldn't discourage you from checking out the film. If you're a George Clooney fan, or simply an enthusiast looking for a must-watch sci-fi on Netflix, "The Midnight Sky" should be on your watchlist, even if it's just to see the gorgeous shots of Augustine in his snowy environment.