The movie is directed by Lee Isaac Chung, who helmed the international hit Minari (2020). Chung wanted to direct the sequel to the original Twisters (1996), which took in a staggering $500 million at the box-office worldwide, because he felt that a great action movie would be a fantastic platform for us all to regain “our understanding of where we are in our relationship with nature. I would love to see more stories in which our identity is defined in relation to the Earth, and I felt like this film was a chance to do that.”
With Chung’s aim to entertain audiences without preaching, Twisters was never going to become a soapbox. “Anytime Hollywood is doing anything with climate change, I think we have to stay positive and let people have fun. As a production, we want to inspire people to embrace the natural world. That can go quite a long ways toward influencing people to make good choices in their relationships with nature, to study what’s happening on this Earth and to figure out how can we become better caretakers of the planet.”
Twisters is a huge departure for Chung after the mediative Minari and he had to convince the studio that he could undertake such an explosive action movie. Ultimately Universal wanted to add that human touch to the story and were impressed with his pitch. The director grew up on the Oklahoma border, raised in the great outdoors on a 50-acre farm so he knew what it is like to return home after living in a big city.
In the footage we have seen, Chung certainly embraces the vast landscapes and endless vistas, which only plays fantastically for the wonderful tornado sequences. You are truly caught up in the breathtaking whirlwinds, meaning the only place to see Twisters is on our big screens at Showcase Cinemas.
See you at the movies!
Twisters opens at Showcase on July 17
