Steven Spielberg is back in familiar territory, but this time, the sky feels heavier. Disclosure Day, his newest project, marks a long-awaited return to the director’s sci-fi roots — a genre he helped define with Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), E.T. (1982), and War of the Worlds (2005).
The teaser wastes no time unsettling the viewer. It opens on Emily Blunt’s Kansas City weather presenter calmly delivering a report before her body betrays her, overtaken by an unseen force. At first, it’s disarming. Then, it’s terrifying. Cut to Colin Firth strapped to a strange machine, his face contorted in panic. Meanwhile, Josh O’Connor’s voice trembles with purpose as he speaks of disclosing everything “all at once.”
Much of the film remains deliberately obscured. There’s no synopsis, no official alien reveal, and the characters seem to know more than the audience ever will. But what is known is strange enough: nature is behaving oddly. A cardinal stares too intently. Deer stand still for too long. Birds don’t flee. And throughout it all, the sound design builds an unnerving rhythm, as if something vast and ancient is trying to communicate through the glitches in reality.
Spielberg’s secrecy on this project is remarkable. The title wasn’t revealed until recently, and plot details were kept on lockdown even during production. Only phrases like “return to sci-fi” and “something to do with aliens” circulated quietly behind studio doors.
David Koepp, Spielberg’s longtime collaborator from Jurassic Park (1993) and War of the Worlds, pens the screenplay. His hand is unmistakable, especially in the trailer’s grounded paranoia. Government agents monitor endless grids of screens, someone is chased across a farmhouse at dusk. It’s all reminiscent of Spielberg’s classic framing with the silhouette in the window and the searchlights in the cornfield, but darker, more claustrophobic.
Alongside Blunt, Firth, and O’Connor, the film features Colman Domingo, Wyatt Russell, and Eve Hewson. Set to release in June 2026, Disclosure Day has already sparked fervent discussion, with many having long interpreted Spielberg’s work as part of a slow cultural preparation for real-world government disclosure. But Spielberg isn’t handing over answers this time. Just signals, and we’re the ones who will have to tune in.
Disclosure Day will open in cinemas on 12 June 2026.
Natalie is a big fan of anything related to movies, TV shows, and anime — you name it. When she’s not reading or being a dedicated cinephile, she’s probably playing gacha and tabletop games, or daydreaming of Caleb from Love and Deepspace.
Kevin Low
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