After nearly a decade away from directing, Gore Verbinski is back with something unexpected. The filmmaker who once commanded billion-dollar blockbusters like “Pirates of the Caribbean” and twisted cult horrors like “The Ring” returns with “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die,” a sci-fi dark comedy that looks to blend his genre chaos and visual precision into something refreshingly strange. Premiering at Beyond Fest to strong buzz before being picked up by Briarcliff Entertainment, the film opens in select theaters on February 13—positioning Verbinski’s comeback as one of early 2026’s biggest curiosities.
The film follows a mysterious man who travels from the future to hijack a Los Angeles diner and recruit an unlikely group of patrons for a one-night quest to save the world from a rogue artificial intelligence. It’s an audacious, high-concept premise that combines elements of adventure, dark humor, and existential sci-fi—a playground ideally suited to Verbinski’s unpredictable sensibilities.
The ensemble cast includes Sam Rockwell, Haley Lu Richardson, Michael Peña, Zazie Beetz, Juno Temple, Dino Fetscher, Anna Acton, Asim Chaudhry, Daniel Barnett, and Dominique Maher. The film is directed by Verbinski from a screenplay by Matthew Robinson. Producing are Denise Chamian, Oliver Obst, Erwin Stoff, Verbinski, and Robert Kulzer, with executive producers Oliver Berben, Warren Goz, Samuel Hall, George Parra, Robinson, Michael Rothstein, and Richard S. Wright.
Synopsis:
A “Man From The Future” arrives at a diner in Los Angeles, where he must recruit the precise combination of disgruntled patrons to join him on a one-night quest to save the world from the terminal threat of rogue artificial intelligence. The film is a sci-fi adventure with a blend of dark humor and poignant commentary on modern technology.
“Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” will be released in theaters by Briarcliff Entertainment on February 13.
