Tom McCarthy’s A Statement, which premiered at the New York Film Festival on October 3, 2026, dramatizes a 1980 meeting of experts tasked with drafting climate policy. The film blends verbatim conference transcripts with fictionalized subplots, featuring a large ensemble cast led by Paul Rudd as the conference moderator.
The 1980 Florida Climate Conference
In late October 1980, days before the election of Ronald Reagan, Congress summoned 20 experts to a beachfront hotel in St. Petersburg, Florida. Their mandate was simple: determine how to address the dire threat posed to the climate by fossil fuel emissions and deliver their findings to Congress in the form of a formal statement. Every word spoken during four marathon sessions over the next 36 hours—including every disagreement, digression, tirade, and truce—was recorded by a stenographer. This historical record, spanning hundreds of pages, serves as the primary basis for the 111-minute drama A Statement, directed by Tom McCarthy.
The film, adapted by McCarthy and screenwriters Thomas Bidegain and Noé Debré from a 10-page section of Nathaniel Rich’s 2019 book Losing Earth: A Recent History, makes a significant creative bet. Roughly half of the film’s dialogue is pulled verbatim from the original stenographer’s document. While the film’s narrative is contained, it attempts to capture the friction of 20 distinct individuals—scientists, activists, policymakers, and lawyers—trying to navigate their personal feelings and professional responsibilities while confronting an existential problem on a global scale.
An Ensemble of Experts
The film’s ensemble cast features a wide array of talent tasked with portraying these historical figures. Paul Rudd stars as the moderator, Tom Jorling, who works alongside his right-hand man Robert Cunningham, played by Noah Robbins. The group also includes Evan Peters as Rafe Pomerance, a director of Friends of the Earth described as the Paul Revere of climate change
; Paul Giamatti as Department of Energy carbon expert David Slade; and Amy Ryan as public health scholar Anne Marie Crocetti. The cast also features Tatiana Maslany as legal scholar Edith Brown Weiss, who represents the Commission on Air Quality, and Jason Clarke as the skeptical staff member John Perry. John Turturro appears as MIT nuclear engineer David Rose, a character who provides moments of levity, including a subplot where he crashes a wedding party at the hotel.
During a crowded post-screening Q&A at Alice Tully Hall, McCarthy highlighted the importance of the ensemble, noting that the film’s conceit required the actors to make riveting drama out of the transcript’s dense, technical language. The cast is rounded out by Zach Woods, Dylan Baker, Michael Chernus, Nina Arianda, Michael Cerveris, Jim Klock, and Christopher Denham.
McCarthy Directs Film with Score by Bryce Dessner
The production was a significant undertaking for McCarthy, who previously directed the 2015 Best Picture Oscar winner Spotlight. The film was produced by Jim Whitaker for Slow Pony, alongside Jonathan King and David Levine for Anonymous Content. The production team also included Jonathan Schwartz, Nick Shumaker, and Bard Dorros of Anonymous Content, as well as Mary Aloe of Aloe Entertainment. The original score for the film was provided by Bryce Dessner, known for his work with The National and previous film scores such as The Two Popes and Sing Sing.
The film’s premiere at the 64th Annual New York Film Festival saw the attendance of the cast and production team, including Tom Bernard and Michael Barker. The project follows McCarthy’s earlier filmography, which includes The Station Agent, The Visitor, and Win Win, as well as his more recent work on Stillwater and The Cobbler.
Reception and Legacy
Critics have noted that the film’s commitment to verbatim transcript dialogue results in a unique, if challenging, viewing experience. Some reviews pointed to the film as a study of human behavior and the difficulty of reaching consensus, while others expressed frustration with the academic nature of the conversations.
Despite the film’s focus on a 46-year-old failed negotiation—as no final consensus was ever reached by the group—the production seeks to humanize the participants through speculative scenes outside the conference room.