Pictures: Shutterstock / Alamy / IMDb / Agencyces Artistiques
For two years, Netflix has been working on Lonely Planet, a new romantic drama set in Morroco. Filming ended over a year and a half ago, and after a lengthy post-production, we’ve learned Lonely Planet is set to land in October 2024. Here’s everything we know so far.
Netflix first officially unveiled the project in April 2022, with Susannah Grant serving as both director and writer. Her Erin Brockovich script was nominated for an Oscar. Her other credits include Unbelievable, The 5th Wave, 28 Days, and more.
Picture: Getty Images
Grant also produces alongside Sarah Timberman and Liza Chasin for 3dot Productions, with VP of Studio Film Kira Goldberg as creative lead for Netflix. The film continues the innovative partnership between Netflix and 3dot, which has thus far produced the streamer’s upcoming thriller series, Anatomy of a Scandal. 3dot entered a multi-year, first-look film deal with Netflix in 2019, with adaptations of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s bestseller The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
What’s the plot of Lonely Planet?
Lonely Planet is billed as a love story set in Morocco when it was first announced, with more plot details revealed over time.
Here’s the full logline for the upcoming movie:
“A reclusive novelist arrives at a prestigious writer’s retreat in Morocco, hoping the remote setting will unlock her writer’s block. While there, she meets a young man — what starts as an acquaintanceship evolves into an intoxicating, life-altering love affair.”
Who is cast in Lonely Planet?
Cast for Netflix’s Lonely Planet
The lead stars of Netflix’s Lonely Planet are Oscar winner Laura Dern (Marriage Story, Jurassic Park) and Liam Hemsworth (The Hunger Games). Dern recently reprised her role of Ellie Sattler in Jurassic World Dominion and was a producer on the Hulu mini-series Tiny Beautiful Things. Hemsworth was recently cast as Geralt of Rivia, replacing Henry Cavill in the fourth season of The Witcher.
In May 2022, Deadline revealed that Diana Silvers and Younès Boucif had joined the cast. Silvers is probably best known for her recent stint on Netflix’s now-canceled comedy series Space Force. Boucif most recently headlined the French Netflix Original comedy series Standing Up.
Other cast members that will appear throughout the movie include:
- Bellina Logan (Sons of Anarchy) as Patricia
- Gustav Dyekjær Giese (Riders of Justice) as Gunnar
- Ben Youcef (Law & Order) as Yassin
- Dillon Lane (Better Things) as Bob
- Arthur Clark (Verona) as Taylor
- Kourosh Parsapour (Kenobi) as Camel Herder
- Francesco Martino (Pointy Break) as Luca
- Quintin Mims (Bel-Air) as Sebastian
- Sami Fekkak (The Freelancer) as Hamid
- Tao Guo (Meg 2: The Trench) as Peng
What’s the production status of Lonely Planet?
Currently awaiting release, Lonely Planet began filming in multiple locations in mid-2022. The cameras began rolling on May 9th, 2022, and eventually wrapped a month later. According to one local report from Morocco about local productions, Netflix invested 190 million dirhams into the project, equating to roughly a budget of $50 million.
Filming did continue in the early months of 2023, with the Daily Mail reporting that the production picked up in Los Angeles (via BackGrid photos—see below). The duo was seen locking lips on set at a restaurant in Acton, and additional beach scenes were filmed on Malibu beach, where the production had imported camels to give off the illusion that it was filmed in Morrocco.
Pictures: Backgrid
Picture: 3dotproductions
What’s the Netflix release date of Lonely Planet?
Netflix hasn’t officially confirmed the release date for Lonely Planet just yet, but we’ve heard from sources that the movie will be landing on Netflix globally on Friday, October 11th, 2024.
For more on Netflix’s movie slate for the final few months 2024, keep it locked here on What’s on Netflix.
Are you looking forward to watching Lonely Planet on Netflix? Let us know in the comments.
