The Sun Never Setsbrings some of our favorite actors together in Joe Swanberg‘s first film in 7 years. Swanberg, who has worked with star Jake Johnsonbefore in his 2013 film Drinking Buddies, is known for his quirky kind of comedy, including Greta Gerwig‘s directorial debut that she co-directed with Swanberg titled Nights and Weekends. With The Sun Never Sets, Swanberg brings to life a love triangle between a adolescent woman named Wendy (Dakota Fanning), her current boyfriend Jack (Johnson), and her ex, Chuck (Cory Michael Smith). And we have an exclusive scene from the film to get people excited!
The Sun Never Sets is described as follows:
“Wendy (Fanning) believes she’s perfectly happy in her relationship, until her older boyfriend, Jack (Johnson), who is divorced with children, insists they take a break to make sure she’s truly okay giving up on the idea of marriage and babies. During this time, Wendy unexpectedly runs into her ex, Chuck (Smith), who reignites her carefree and spontaneous side, and suddenly seems to want a family. The three of them navigate a chaotic, confusing, and often funny relationship triangle, reminding us that the pursuit of love is beautiful and messy all at once. The film was shot on 35mm on location in Alaska.”
Our exclusive sneak peek features Johnson and Fanning breaking down a scene where Wendy confronts Jack. As Fanning points out, she breaks into laughter, and while it seemingly wasn’t scripted, the moment made the final cut thanks to how both Fanning and Johnson played it. For Swanberg, this film is “an evolution of Joe’s style with his most tautly constructed and mainstream film yet, filmed with the gorgeous backdrop of Alaska. The film is the culmination of his work crafting masterfully nuanced, grounded stories examining relationships. But it feels distinctly different — his frequent collaborator Jake Johnson (also a producer), along with Dakota and Corey, make up a complex love-triangle tale about the beautiful mess of pursuing love that is also injected with plenty of humor.”
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re forthright about what you’re actually afraid of.
04
How do you deal with authority you don’t trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.
08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You’d Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Resistance, Zion
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t aid but notice the seams in things.
You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.
The Wasteland
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are tough to kill and harder to break. That’s you.
You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Los Angeles, 2049
Blade Runner
You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
You read people accurately, keep your circle diminutive, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.
Arrakis
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is expansive, raucous, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.
You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
Jake Johnson Continues Flexing His Dramatic Talents
Johnson became a household name as Nick Miller on the hit series New Girl. Since then, he has proven his abilities as an actor with roles in Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed on Apple TV, in the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse films, and more. The Sun Never Sets feels like a fresh take for him as an actor. He is often the witty guy or a role that isn’t the “put-together” ex, as is the case with this film. So getting to see him tackle being the more mature person in a relationship is going to be invigorating for fans of the comedic actor.
You can see Johnson, Fanning, and Smith shine in The Sun Never Sets when it hits theaters on September 4, following exclusive early screenings in Chicago on August 28.
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