Moonfall (Canal+): was the expertise of a real astronaut called upon during filming?

Roland Emmerich uses the Moon to bring about the end of the world in Moonfall, broadcast this Friday, April 28, 2023 on Canal+. So, did he enlist the services of a real astronaut during the filming of this disaster film?

Roland Emmerich is the great disaster film specialist. Also experienced in the field of war (The Patriot, Midway), he is best known for his big-budget films, with great blows of explosions of all kinds. In thirty years, his feature films have collected more than 4 billion dollars at the worldwide box office. Very often, the German-American director likes to approach the end of the world by pulling on the rope of science fiction. A particular appetite which has earned him the nickname of “master of disaster”. After the aliens in Independence Day (1996), the climate in The day after (2004), or even a Mayan prophecy in 2012 (2009), Roland Emmerich triggers a new apocalypse emanating… from the Moon with Moonfall (2022).

A mission gone wrong

Moonfall follows astronauts Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) and Jocinda Fowler (Halle Berry). During a repair mission in orbit, a mysterious phenomenon occurs on the surface of the Moon and triggers chaos, causing the death of one of their colleague. Brian Harper is held accountable and his career is shattered. Ten years after the crash, NASA scientists and a conspiracy theorist find that Earth’s natural satellite is inexplicably shifting orbits and getting dangerously close. The fallen astronaut then resumes service. He and Jocinda Fowler team up again to save the planet. A pitch that has the merit of being effective, even if it does not revolutionize the genre.

“It’s just a movie”

In disaster films, scientific veracity is not necessarily the priority. But the directors sometimes surround themselves with advisers in order to remain realistic. Moonfall is no exception to the rule, since an astronaut was present on the set. However, his opinion did not seem to count more than another… quite the contrary. When he approached the director, retorting “it’s not really possible” (in comments relayed by IMDb), the latter and the film crew told him to deal with it. Before summarizing the substance of their thoughts with the eternal answer: “It’s just a movie”. A rather surprising reaction…