'Ad Astra' Sneak Peek: Moon Rover Chase Is a Fight Against Space Pirates

While we pace up and down, waiting impatiently for the Sept. 20 opening date of the new space thriller "Ad Astra," more footage has been released following its recent premiere at this year's Venice Film Festival. And wow, it doesn't disappoint.

Remember that scene we glimpsed in the last two trailers that appeared to show astronauts in a frantic chase across the lunar surface in several moon buggy-type vehicles? This new footage, which you can see here, is almost two minutes of that set-piece sequence.

It seems that upon arriving at the extremely impressive moon base, complete with Virgin Atlantic outlet, Applebee's, a DHL and even a Subway sandwich shop, astronaut Roy McBride, played by Brad Pitt, must transfer across the lunar surface to a launch complex on the far side. Sounds easy enough, except he has to deal with one thing along the way — space pirates.

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Space pirates on the moon…every Apollo astronaut’s worst nightmare. The moon is not a peaceful place in "Ad Astra" starring Brad Pitt. (Image credit: Twentieth Century Fox)

"We've been having trouble with pirates since September," Lt Willy Levant (Sean Blakemore) explains to McBride. "Some countries have been giving them safe haven. They'll take hostages or go for our rovers. It’s like the wild west out there," he says grimly.

So, sit back, strap in and prepare to get excited.

Related: Epic 'Ad Astra' Trailer Features Moon Buggy Chase & Outer Solar System

In the upcoming movie, McBride must travel to the outer edges of the solar system to find his missing father (played by Tommy Lee Jones) and unravel a mystery that threatens the survival of life as we know it.

Following its world premiere in Venice, the movie received a lot of positive reviews. The Guardian gave it five stars and it currently has a score of 8.0 on IMDb.

Richard Lawson, of Vanity Fair, wrote, "Sure, a lot of the movie's aesthetics call to mind other somber space-bound adventures — but Gray asserts his own voice, his own perspective, throughout. Gray is prodding at something just as Roy McBride is, scratching at the howl of the universe to see what’s making the noise."

"Ad Astra" also stars Liv Tyler, Donald Sutherland and Ruth Negga and will be released to the public on Sept. 20. The film's initial May release date was delayed because of The Walt Disney Co. buyout of Twentieth Century Fox.

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When Scott's application to the NASA astronaut training program was turned down, he was naturally upset...as any 6-year-old boy would be. He chose instead to write as much as he possibly could about science, technology and space exploration. He graduated from The University of Coventry and received his training on Fleet Street in London. He still hopes to be the first journalist in space.