What if humanity’s boldest fix for climate chaos turned into its deadliest threat? Dean Devlin’s globe-trotting sci-fi spectacle blends weather-gone-wild set pieces with a ticking-clock conspiracy and it’s finding fresh traction on Netflix.
Part sci-fi actioner, part cautionary tale, Geostorm imagines a future where a satellite network designed to tame extreme weather begins unleashing catastrophic events around the world. Fronted by Gerard Butler and backed by old-school disaster-movie DNA, it’s a loud, unabashedly pulpy ride that’s tailor-made for weeknight streaming. Despite a chilly theatrical reception back in 2017, the film has gained a second life online—where its city-levelling thrills and brisk pacing land exactly as intended.
Here is everything you need to know about Geostorm – from the plot and cast to reviews and release date. The trailer is at the bottom of the article.
All the key details about Geostorm
- Title: Geostorm
- Format: Film
- Length: 109 minutes
- Genre: Science fiction, Action, Disaster
- Year of release: 2017
- Director: Dean Devlin
- Main cast: Gerard Butler, Jim Sturgess, Abbie Cornish, Ed Harris
- Produced by: Warner Bros. Pictures, Electric Entertainment
What happens in Geostorm?
After a wave of unprecedented climate disasters, the world’s governments collaborate on “Dutch Boy,” a vast ring of climate-control satellites that stabilize Earth’s weather. For a while, it works-hurricanes fizzle, heatwaves cool, and the planet breathes again.
Then the system sputters. A frozen desert here, a boiling street there-the anomalies escalate in eerie synchronization. Jake Lawson (Gerard Butler), the brilliant but sidelined engineer who built Dutch Boy, is sent to a space station to diagnose the fault, while his estranged brother Max (Jim Sturgess) digs into the political intrigue back on Earth. As sabotage becomes the leading theory, the brothers race to stop a cascading “geostorm” that could swallow the globe.
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Who’s in the cast of Geostorm?
Butler plays Jake with gruff, hands-on heroism; Sturgess is the more diplomatic Max, torn between duty and family. Abbie Cornish brings steel as Secret Service agent Sarah Wilson, while Ed Harris and Andy García add heavyweight authority as beltway power players managing a planetary crisis. The ensemble keeps human stakes alive amid the digital mayhem.
Is Geostorm based on a true story?
No. The film is an original sci-fi thriller from Dean Devlin and Paul Guyot. It riffs on real climate anxieties and speculative geo-engineering but remains firmly in popcorn-movie territory. (Fun nod: Devlin also co-wrote ’90s disaster staples like Independence Day.)
What are the reviews on Geostorm?
Critics were largely unimpressed on release-citing cliché-heavy dialogue and overreliance on CG spectacle-while audiences split between dismissal and guilty-pleasure enthusiasm. On streaming, however, its straightforward thrills, globe-hopping set pieces, and comfort-food genre beats have helped it rebound with viewers looking for a high-energy, low-commitment watch.
Where was Geostorm filmed?
Production centered in New Orleans, Louisiana, with large soundstage work and extensive VFX world-building to realize the film’s international scale and space-station interiors.
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Geostorm: Behind the scenes and fun facts
- The project faced schedule shifts and reshoots before its 2017 release.
- With a budget north of $120M, it ranks among the decade’s pricier disaster films.
- The title refers to a chain reaction of synchronized super-storms threatening to merge into a world-ending event.
- Despite box-office headwinds, it’s developed a small cult following among disaster-movie completists.
What’s Geostorm like?
If you enjoyed The Day After Tomorrow or 2012, this is the right film for you-blending globe-spanning destruction with a race-against-time conspiracy and a space-set engineering puzzle.
When is Geostorm coming out on streaming?
Available now. Geostorm is already streaming on Netflix. Release date: October 20, 2017 (theatrical); now available on Netflix. Watch on Netflix.
Watch the trailer
In the meantime, here’s the trailer.
