With a bit of glitter and it a lot of tears, Natalie Portman transforms into a haunted pop star who increasingly unravels in the official new trailer for Vox Lux.
The trailer opens on Portman as 31-year-old Celeste being interviewed by a reporter (hi, Christopher Abbott!) about her latest work. It’s clear Celeste is having trouble navigating her career after some sort of accident, and tells the reporter in a neat Long Island accent that her new project is about “rebirth.” The scene cuts to Celeste done up in her glittery pop-punk princess performance gear, ready to make her comeback to a stadium of adoring fans.
But the real story of Vox Lux begins much earlier. In 1999, Celeste and her sister Eleanor survive a Columbine-esque shooting at their school. In the wake of that tragedy, the sisters compose and perform a song about the violent experience, which launches Celeste into stardom. In 2017, Celeste now has a teenage daughter and is struggling with her disillusionment about the music industry’s assembly-style way of producing celebrities. Jude Law plays Portman’s manager.
Portman has played performers like in Black Swan and traumatized women like Jackie Kennedy, but it’s especially satisfying to watch Natalie Portman take on the role of a total diva smashing her fist and screaming about wanting to be treated like a human being.
Directed by Brady Corbet, the film hits theaters on Dec. 7 and is being co-scored by actual pop star Sia. So not only will Vox Lux be an enticingly dark alternative to A Star Is Born, it too will come with bops!
