NASA has a long-standing flair for the mainstream movie industry because merging science and fiction helps promote space exploration to the public. The agency is as it again as it collaborated with Sony Pictures for its "Passengers" movie where stars Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence.
Pratt and Lawrence's movie, in turn, will be shown in space aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The agency had openly supported and injected real-life scientific facts to movies such as "The Martian" and "Star Trek".
The collaboration was in the form of a PSA where both actors were filmed promoting NASA's search for the next habitable exoplanet. The film discusses space explorations and space flight to another planet. Despite being an entirely fictional film, the PSA released by NASA with the participation of the "Passengers" actors aims to encourage moviegoers to learn more about science and space explorations.
"Scientists believe there may be there may be at least one potentially habitable planet revolving around every star we see in the sky," Passenger lead actor Chris Pratt said in the video released by NASA.
Real-life scientists and space explorers are already looking at Proxima B, believed to be a habitable planet, in Earth's neighborhood star system Alpha Centauri. "NASA is exploring our solar system, and far beyond, to look for what one day could be a new home away from earth," Oscar-winning actress and "Passengers" female lead said in the same video.
But that's not where the partnership ends; NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) scientists Tiffany Kataria will speak at a movie press conference to promote space explorations, according to a report. Just like any other movie supported by the agency, NASA representatives, usually astronauts are expected to walk the red carpet during the premiere night to support the film.
The collaboration works best for both, as NASA will benefit from having Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence as its space exploration ambassadors, while the movie gets to be promoted by a premier government agency. Not to mention, astronauts aboard the International Space Station will also get to see the out-of-this-world sci-fi flick, in space.