Russia launches actor, director to ISS; to shoot scenes for first feature-length film in space
Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, launched a cosmonaut, a film director, and an actress aboard its Soyuz spacecraft from Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome.
FollowWhile Tom Cruise is known for his death-defying exploits such as hanging from the side of an aeroplane, climbing the Burj Khalifa, and flying fighter planes at Mach speed, he won't be able to beat what a Russian film team is going to try. The film team is preparing to embark aboard a Soyuz spacecraft to film a segment on the International Space Station (ISS).
Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, launched a cosmonaut, a film director, and an actress aboard its Soyuz spacecraft from Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome.
Cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov, a veteran of three long-duration spaceflights, will pilot the Soyuz, joined by film director Klim Shipenko and actress Yulia Peresild. While Shkaplerov will stay at the flying outpost for 174 days, the actor-director team will remain for 12 days to film a segment for the film.
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"Two orbits after launch, the spacecraft will dock with the Russian portion of the International Space Station. The ISS-66 crew mission will span 174 days, with spaceflight participants staying aboard the ISS for at least 12 days," Roscomos announced in a statement.
The actor-director will film a sequence for the forthcoming film 'The Challenge,' which follows a doctor who, according to sources, goes to the ISS on short notice to provide life-saving care to a cosmonaut. On the ISS, the crew will film a 35-40 minute scene. Before embarking on launch preparations, Yulia Peresild, who is on track to become the first actress in space, stated that the first two seconds are terrifying, but the rest is lovely. Yulia, who has no prior experience in aviation or space science, has been training with the space agency after passing her audition.
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In addition to Yulia, cosmonauts Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov will appear in the film. "The project will become clear proof that space trips are progressively becoming available not just to specialists but also to an ever-widening spectrum of curious individuals," the film's website stated. With this action, Russia will become the first country to shoot beyond Earth's orbit, with NASA and Tom Cruise playing catch-up. After authorities were afraid that Nasa might steal their moment, the Russian space agency accelerated the project.
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