James Gray to Write, Direct 1980s Memoir 'Armageddon Time'

The film recounts the 'Ad Astra' helmer's upbringing in the New York borough of Queens, centering on a private school that counts Donald Trump among its alumnae.


Ad Astra director James Gray is set to write and helm Armageddon Time, a semi-autobiographical film that recounts his 1980s upbringing in the New York borough of Queens.


RT Features, which produced the Brad Pitt-starrer Ad Astra, is reteaming with Gray for Armageddon Time, which recalls his years during the mid-1980s as a student at Kew-Forest School, a private school which counts Donald Trump and Hank Azaria among its alumnae.


Gray penned the script for the film, with RT Features’ Rodrigo Teixeira producing. CAA Media Finance arranged the financing and will represent the sales rights, starting at Cannes.


Casting is currently underway, with principal photography set to start early next year in New York. Screenwriter-director Gray is also known for such movies as Little Odessa and The Yards and is a Cannes competition favorite.


"RT Features is the best partner a director could ask for — they've got great taste, and they know how to support the filmmaker; I'm thrilled to be working with them again," Gray said Thursday in a statement.


"I am very happy to continue our partnership with James and embark on our second feature together, especially on such an intimate project," Teixeira said in his own statement. "He pitched this idea to me during one of our lunch breaks on the set of Ad Astra. I have always loved watching his films and we bonded over film trivia — his knowledge is just incredible! It has always been a career dream to work with James."


Gray is also set to direct I Am Pilgrim for Matthew Vaughn’s Marv Films and MGM.