The Electric State: A road trip through 1994, Robots, and Existential Dread (Netflix scifi film trailer).

The Electric State is coming to Netflix in 2025, and if you’ve ever thought to yourself, “What if Stranger Things had more robots and existential dread?” this might be the show for you. Directed by the Russo Brothers, it’s based on Simon Stålenhag’s gorgeous graphic novel, though it seems they’ve taken a slight detour—like, taking the scenic route and never looking at the map again.

Set in an alternate 1994, The Electric State follows Michelle (played by Millie Bobby Brown, of yes, I’m in everything fame) as she teams up with a robot claiming to know where her missing brother is. Chris Pratt plays Keats, Michelle’s robotic sidekick who, judging by Pratt’s recent career, will likely have a quip for every situation, no matter how dark or dramatic. It’s essentially a buddy cop adventure, but instead of guns and bad guys, we have robot revolutions and 90s nostalgia.

Let’s talk about the plot—well, the plot we think we’re getting. Michelle embarks on a journey to find her brother (who, let’s be honest, might be the one family member worse at keeping in touch than Hopper in Stranger Things). Along the way, she’ll probably meet quirky characters like Ethan Skate (Stanley Tucci), who sounds like he might be the world’s most underwhelming rollerblading enthusiast, and Colonel Marshall Bradbury (Giancarlo Esposito), who’s definitely not going to make things easy for anyone. If Esposito’s track record holds up, he’ll probably spend most of the film glaring menacingly and speaking in low, threatening tones—so expect that.

But the real stars here are the robots. We’ve got a whole bunch of them, voiced by the likes of Woody Harrelson, Alan Tudyk, and Brian Cox. One of them is named Mr. Peanut (Harrelson), which raises all sorts of questions about what 90s nostalgia really means to the Russos. Are we talking about that weird anthropomorphic nut mascot from the old commercials? Because I wasn’t prepared for that kind of emotional rollercoaster. The film might give us a bit of a robot rebellion—because what’s a 90s sci-fi flick without a little AI uprising?—but it’s unclear whether the robots are looking for equal rights or just someone who knows how to fix their dial-up.

Now, if you were expecting a faithful adaptation of the original graphic novel, brace yourself. The Russo Brothers have basically taken the artwork from Stålenhag and said, “You know what this needs? Muddy colour-grading and a completely different story!” That’s right, fans of the novel can expect some serious divergence, because according to the Russos, the original material just didn’t show enough of the world. (Translation: “We didn’t really get it, so we’re making up our own thing.”)

The movie’s set in 1994, so expect some serious retro vibes. Think floppy disks, oversized headphones, and landlines that took up half your kitchen counter. The aesthetic is going to scream ’90s nostalgia—but with robots, because nothing says “the past was better” like a sentient machine.

Of course, the cast is stacked, and not just because Netflix has apparently decided to see how many A-listers they can cram into one film. Millie Bobby Brown is here to remind us she can act her way out of any apocalyptic situation, while Chris Pratt continues his transition into the Ryan Reynolds of sci-fi. Ke Huy Quan’s character, Dr. Amherst, sounds like he’ll be dishing out scientific exposition like candy (and, given his recent Oscar win, we’re all here for it). Meanwhile, Stanley Tucci as Ethan Skate—well, no one really knows what that role is about yet, but it’s Tucci, so we’ll just assume it’ll be quirky and amazing.

And let’s not forget the score by Alan Silvestri. The man responsible for making Avengers: Endgame feel even more epic is back, and this time, he’s putting his musical magic into a robot-filled 1990s dystopia. So even if you’re not emotionally invested in the story, you can at least vibe to some serious soundscapes while robots do robot things.

The big question is: will The Electric State stick the landing? It’s shaping up to be a weird blend of adventure, robot rebellion, and quirky 90s aesthetics. The Russo Brothers clearly aren’t afraid to put their own spin on the material, and while that might upset die-hard fans of the graphic novel, it could work if you’re in the mood for something visually cool and narratively… let’s say “unpredictable.”

Mark your calendars for March 14th, 2025, because The Electric State is about to drop. Whether it’ll be a mind-bending exploration of AI and human relationships or just an excuse to watch Chris Pratt talk to robots for two hours remains to be seen. Either way, it’s going to be one heck of a ride.