Ridley Scott: ‘Great writing is like great music’

By Lauren Del Fabbro, Press Association Entertainment Reporter

Filmmaker Ridley Scott has said “great writing is like great music”.

The director, 88, known for Gladiator, The Martian and Thelma and Louise, was behind the upcoming film adaptation of Peter Heller’s 2012 novel, The Dog Stars.

The action film follows Hig, a pilot played by Wuthering Heights star Jacob Elordi, who tries to stay alive alongside a group of survivors in a post-apocalyptic world after a virus wipes out most of humanity.

Speaking about what compelled Scott to make the film for the big screen, he told the Press Association at the world premiere in central London: “Readers like music, and great writing is like great music.

“So once I opened up that page with a good great writer, I listened to the music and I engaged.”

Scott warned audiences to “be careful” and “watch out” noting that the concept of the film is like a world where “you have Covid and then you have financial global collapse in 2008, but greedy banking, then you have something else. You have panic, chaos.

“Pay attention because it is kind of circling the waggon frame.”

The film also stars The Substance actress Margaret Qualley, No Country for Old Men’s Josh Brolin, Memento actor Guy Pearce and Doctor Strange actor Benedict Wong.

Wong, who reunited with Scott on the film after appearing in The Martian and Prometheus, said the film is a “timely reminder” to be kind in a “divided world”.

He said: “It’s just a reminder of what we need. To be humane, humanity.

“The kindness that we need in a divided world hopefully, that we can take a leaf out of it, or we can take scenes from this movie.

“It’s just a timely reminder of maybe what we need to watch.

“We’ve definitely been in a situation in something that resonated like Covid.

“We’ve lost loved ones and so that’s not so far from the truth.

“It’s hope that centres around this – searching for humanity in devastating times.”

It comes weeks after Wong co-wrote an op-ed for The Guardian alongside his Doctor Strange co-star Benedict Cumberbatch and Scottish actor Alan Cumming calling on the UK government to block the Paramount-Warner Bros merger claiming it “threatens to inflict immense harm on the British public”.

Since the article, “some concessions” have been made Wong said, however, he remains insistent that the two “great companies” should “stand individually alone”.

He said: “I never thought I’d find myself in that sort of situation, but you know, I care a lot about saving crews, jobs, and customers as well. The industry itself, you know, we bring in £12 billion in the economy. Like we make something out of nothing, and we’re good at this.

“During Covid everything kind of fell down, and we’re trying to build back up.

“With any sort of merger, there’s always going to be losses and I just sort of felt that Paramount and Warner Brothers should stand individually alone.

“They’re great, great companies separately and both should have their own voice.”

The Dog Stars is out in Irish cinemas on August 26th, 2026.