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- Margaret Qualley reveals what makes Ridley Scott’s The Dog Stars stand out from other post-apocalyptic films
Margaret Qualley reveals what makes Ridley Scott’s The Dog Stars stand out from other post-apocalyptic films
The film hasn't had the most enthusiastic reception from critics.
- Patrick Cremona
Published: Thursday, 27 August 2026 at 4:25 pm
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Ridley Scott's latest film The Dog Stars hasn't enjoyed the most enthusiastic of receptions so far – sitting on a score of just 39% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes including a fairly tepid 3-star write-up from us.
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But according to star Margaret Qualley – who leads the film alongside Jacob Elordi – cinemagoers should seek out the film if they're after something a little different than other post-apocalyptic films of this type.
"I loved how, kind of, quiet and hopeful the story was," she told Radio Times when asked what sets it apart from other examples in the genre.
"It felt very sensitive, and I was excited to see what Ridley – somebody who's capable of such dynamic, heightened filmmaking – would do with such a kind of sensitive script."
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Guy Pearce, who also has a key role in the film as the father of Qualley's character, agreed with her take and explained he'd been won over after reading Peter Heller's source novel of the same name.
"The book offers a kind of... you certainly get the reality and the sense that this world is a post-apocalyptic world, but there is this sort of almost dreamlike, hopeful quality about it," he said.
"Which did feel different than a lot of the sort of doomsday apocalyptic stories that we've made before or that we've seen. So yeah, it was definitely something in the voice of the story that felt different than others."
Watch trailer
The film – which was released in UK cinemas on Wednesday (26 August) – follows grieving former civilian pilot Hig (Elordi) as he holds onto the possibility of a better way of life, despite the reservations of his more cynical survivalist buddy Bangley (Josh Brolin).
A garbled radio message eventually gives him the impetus he needs to fly further afield then usual in his old Cessna, and he soon comes into contact with Cima (Qualley), with whom he strikes up a bond.
In our aforementioned review, we remarked that it was a "thoughtful rather than spectacular offering" and that it "may leave avid fans of survival thrillers wanting something more propulsive."
The Dog Stars is out now in UK cinemas.
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Authors
Patrick CremonaSenior Film Writer
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
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