Ariana DeBose's I.S.S. recently dropped its trailer and it's a thriller… in space.

The International Space Station is the largest modular floating in low Earth orbit. While the movie only has U.S. astronauts and Russian cosmonauts on board, it actually involves five space agencies: the U.S.'s NASA, Russia's Roscosmos, Japan's JAXA, Europe's ESA and Canada's CSA.

The I.S.S.: an overview

However, the station is divided into two sections: one for the U.S. and the other countries, the United States Orbital Segment (USOS), while the other is run by the Russian, the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS).

Roscosmos has endorsed the continued operation of their section through 2024, since Russia has plans to use the segment to build its own space station called OPSEK (Orbital Piloted Assembly and Experiment Complex). However, with the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and the international sanctions on Russia, the continued ROS funding is currently in question.

The trailer starts off with both the Russians welcoming the Americans on board. They even agree not to talk politics while there because “they are one.” However, that doesn't last long because something big, something bad happened down on Earth.

DeBose's Dr. Kira relays a message from the American side: that they must maintain control of the station. However, if the Americans have that order, logic dictates that so do the Russians. The stakes are high for both groups as they struggle to survive and follow orders. To add to that, something catastrophic just happened to their home planet.

The official synopsis for the movie reads: “Tensions flare in the near future aboard the International Space Station as a worldwide conflict breaks out on Earth. Reeling from this, the astronauts receive orders from the ground: take control of the station by any means necessary.”

Joining the Academy-Award-winning DaBose are Chris Messina, Pilou Asbaek, John Gallagher Jr., Costa Ronin and Masha Mashkova. The film premiered at the 2023 Tribeca film festival and will be released in U.S. cinemas on Jan. 19, 2024.