After a six-year break from acting in live-action movies, Matthew McConaughey is making his return in a new thriller based on a true story.
Apple TV+ just dropped the first trailer for The Lost Bus, a new drama that unpacks everything that went wrong with California’s 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in the state’s history. The fire ignited in Butte County and quickly made its way to Paradise, California, resulting in 85 casualties and over 150,000 acres of land torched.
In the film, McConaughey plays Kevin McKay, a tired bus driver and father of a teenage boy, who answers a distress call of 23 children and their teacher, Mary (America Ferrera), all stranded at a local elementary school when the Camp Fire’s deadly flames reach their school.
“It’s too late. It’s too late. I’m too late as a father,” Kevin whispers to Mary in the trailer, as the inferno rages around them.
The trailer is eerily quiet. Instead of music, the only thing we can hear is the roar of the fire’s flames and the crackling sounds as it consumes everything in its path.
Directed by Paul Greengrass, known for his work on United 93 and The Bourne Ultimatum, the film also stars Yul Vazquez, Ashlie Atkinson, Danny McCarthy, Spencer Watson, and Peter Diseth.
The Lost Bus is one of live-action two projects McConaughey will release in 2025. The other, The Rivals of Amziah King, had its festival premiere at SXSW in the spring.
“I remembered a couple of things: One, how much I truly enjoy performing. Two, I remembered, ‘hey, McConaughey, you’re pretty damn good at this,’” the actor told Variety about his time away. “And three, I remembered that acting is a vacation for me, and what I mean by vacation is that when I’m performing, it’s my singular focus. When I walk out the door in the morning, my wife says, ‘Go kick some a–. I got the kiddos. We’re good.’ That’s vacation. Because I’m not multitasking. I’m not compartmentalizing. I’m fully focused on finding the truth of my character.”
In a previous statement, Greengrass said, “The Lost Bus is the story of quiet heroism—of people coming together in the face of the unthinkable. I’m honored to have been entrusted with this story.”
The Lost Bus is set to hit theaters on Sep. 19, before becoming available for streaming on Apple TV+ on Oct. 9.
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