Gore Verbinski’s New Film Blends AI, Zombies, and Time Travel

Gore Verbinski’s upcoming film, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, offers a unique take on contemporary anxieties surrounding artificial intelligence. The film, set to be released on February 13, 2026, features a blend of time travel, zombie-like teenagers, and a surreal giant horse, promising an intriguing cinematic experience.

The new trailer showcases Sam Rockwell as a time-traveling character who enters a Los Angeles diner with an urgent warning reminiscent of iconic roles played by Bruce Willis in 12 Monkeys and Michael Biehn in The Terminator. Rockwell’s character, clothed in mismatched footwear and carrying a child’s backpack, claims to hail from a “nightmare apocalypse” and seeks to recruit allies to mend a fractured timeline.

As the trailer unfolds, viewers are introduced to a ragtag group of volunteers, armed with gardening tools and sporting equipment, preparing for an unpredictable night. The primary threat appears to be a new form of AI that has captivated teenagers, who chase after their teachers, portrayed by Michael Peña of Ant-Man fame and Zazie Beetz from Invincible, reminiscent of zombies armed with smartphones.

The film’s visuals are strikingly bizarre, featuring scenes such as a pastel-colored children’s birthday party, unsettling animated toys reminiscent of those created by the villain Sid Phillips from Toy Story, and a colossal horse capable of crushing a car underfoot.

Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die had its first public screening at Fantastic Fest in September 2023, an annual festival in Austin dedicated to genre films. The response was generally positive, with critics praising Rockwell’s performance and highlighting Verbinski and Robinson’s grim perspective not only on the future but also on the current state of a society seemingly resigned to the violence fueled by Silicon Valley’s influence.

As anticipation builds for the film’s release, it reflects a growing trend in Hollywood to address the complex relationship between society and technology through imaginative storytelling. With its blend of humor and horror, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die aims to entertain while also provoking thought about the consequences of unchecked technological advancement.