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125-504: Jason R. Reitman ( / ˈ r aɪ t m ə n / ; born October 19, 1977) is a Canadian–American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the films Thank You for Smoking (2005), Juno (2007), Up in the Air (2009), Young Adult (2011), Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021), and Saturday Night (2024). He has received one Grammy Award , one Golden Globe and four Academy Award nominations, two of which are for Best Director . Reitman

250-672: A Big Tobacco spokesman using "research" from an institution of which he is vice-president , a tobacco lobby called the "Academy of Tobacco Studies". It claims there is no link between tobacco and lung disease. Naylor and his friends, firearm lobbyist Bobby Jay Bliss and alcohol lobbyist Polly Bailey, meet every week and jokingly call themselves the "Merchants of Death" or "The MOD Squad". As anti-tobacco campaigns mount and numbers of young smokers decline, Naylor's boss, BR, sends Naylor to Los Angeles to bargain for cigarette product placement in upcoming movies. Naylor takes along his young son, Joey, in hopes of bonding with him. The next day, Naylor

375-458: A Charlie Rose interview, a making-of featurette, an "America: Living in Spin" featurette, a poster gallery, and an art gallery. The film has not yet been released on Blu-ray . Variety reported on November 24, 2006, that NBC planned to create a television series based on the film. Sacks headed the adaptation as executive producer, with Rick Cleveland attached as head writer. After NBC passed on

500-483: A June 2021, release, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the release date was pushed back to November 11, 2021. After the success of the film, both Reitman and his writing partner Gil Kenan had signed an overall deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment to develop more projects. Reitman was set to return to direct the sequel to Ghostbusters: Afterlife entitled Frozen Empire , but later was replaced by Kenan, who remains as

625-488: A WGA event where both said they were happy to share credit now that the course of events, and Turner's contribution to the final product, had been made clear. In the spring of 2009, Reitman directed Up in the Air starring George Clooney . Up in the Air is based on a novel written by Walter Kirn about a corporate downsizer who travels from city to city and is fanatical about collecting his ten millionth frequent flier mile. The film features real-world characters cast from

750-441: A WGA event where both said they were happy to share credit, after Turner's contribution to the final product was made clear. At a press screening, Reitman also said that his father Ivan had written "the best line in the movie." Reitman repeatedly stated that he wrote parts specifically for George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman, Danny McBride, Melanie Lynskey, Amy Morton, Sam Elliott and Zach Galifianakis,. On

875-463: A bit too seriously." The Nick Naylor character has been compared to real-life Richard Berman of the Center for Consumer Freedom . While Thank You for Smoking the book was praised as a sharp criticism of both anti-smoking lobbyists and the tobacco industry, the film has received more mixed reviews on its satirical content. Steve Palopoli of Metro Silicon Valley writes that "no matter" how much

1000-455: A cassette to Reitman after the director did an interview at Webster University . Renick included a spoken-word introduction about the song on the cassette so that Reitman would know why he was given the song. Reitman found a tape deck, listened, liked the song and placed the original introduction and song from the cassette midway through the credits. Reitman stated that the song has a do-it-yourself authenticity. Reitman heavily promoted Up in

1125-553: A change of heart by the film's end and repent for his past. It was only after meeting David O. Sacks , who had made his fortune as the former COO of the Internet payment company PayPal , that Reitman found a financier for his script. A first-time producer, Sacks spent over a year trying to acquire the rights to the film from Icon. He financed most of the film's $ 8.5 million budget and let Reitman keep most of his original draft. The project marked Reitman's first feature-length film as

1250-502: A cheerleader who is possessed by a demon and starts feeding off the boys in a Minnesota farming town. In 2009, Reitman left Hard C to form Right of Way Films. In 2001, the year the novel Up in the Air was published, Sheldon Turner discovered the book and wrote a screenplay adaptation, which he sold to DreamWorks in 2003. Jason Reitman later came upon the novel (initially attracted by the Christopher Buckley blurb on

1375-460: A director, though he previously directed short films and commercials and had worked on the set of his father, director Ivan Reitman . During the filming, Reitman made the conscious decision not to show any actual smoking of cigarettes. The only scenes that include smoking are older films the characters watch, such as when John Wayne lights up in Sands of Iwo Jima . Before the film was screened at

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1500-510: A documentary about job loss. He specified "documentary" in the ad so that actors would not respond. Reitman was amazed by how many people of different age, race, and gender were willing to speak frankly about what happened and what a cathartic experience it had been. The film crew received a startling 100 responses, including 60 people filmed (30 in Detroit and 30 in St. Louis). Twenty-two are seen in

1625-536: A few songs including Help Yourself in the aisle of the aircraft. On November 18, 2009, Backstage and Paramount Pictures had a special screening of Up in the Air for Screen Actors Guild and Backstage members at The Paramount Theatre (on the Paramount Lot), Los Angeles, California . The screening of the film was followed by a conversation with cast members Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. The Starz Denver Film Festival closed on November 22, 2009, with

1750-728: A friend of Ivan Reitman, also revealed that he had seen Jason's early short films and was impressed enough to offer him the opportunity to direct an episode of Son of the Beach (a TV series he produced, a goofy parody of Baywatch ), which Jason declined, citing that he was busy obtaining financing for Thank You for Smoking at the time. Reitman produced and directed the 2007 holiday season commercials for Wal-Mart with advertising agency Bernstein-Rein . He has also directed ads for Burger King , Nintendo , BMW and Buick . In television, Reitman directed two episodes of The Office entitled " Local Ad " and " Frame Toby ". Reitman also directed

1875-414: A genre on its ear". Through Hard C Productions, Reitman is set to produce and direct Banzai Shadowhands , a comedy about "a once-great ninja who is now living a life of mediocrity". Shadowhands will be written by The Office ' s Rainn Wilson . Reitman met Wilson on the set of his father's film My Super Ex-Girlfriend , in which Wilson had a supporting role. No start date for filming has been set, and it

2000-431: A little raise of an eyebrow, or George would give the same thing. Those tiny nuances are really helpful to show their character and show what they are after." The film has a thematic connection to Margery Williams ' 1922 children's book The Velveteen Rabbit , which appears in the film, before the wedding. Reitman noted that In one sense, it's a movie about a man who fires people for a living. In another sense, it's

2125-429: A major cheese producer, is likewise guilty of cholesterol -related deaths. Although BR offers Naylor his old job again, Naylor rejects it as Big Tobacco is settling claims of liability . He also mentions Heather was humiliated upon being terminated by the paper for her article and has been reduced to a cub reporter handling weather on a local news station. Naylor supports his son's newfound interest in debating and opens

2250-453: A modern-day Frank Capra , capturing the nation's anxieties and culture of resilience." Stephen Saito of IFC.com wrote, "It touches on larger themes of mass unemployment, cultural alienation and technology as a crutch. But ultimately, it's really an expertly done character study that's a dramatic change of pace from director Jason Reitman's previous two films." Jonathan Romney of The Independent wrote, "Its cynical wit almost places it in

2375-532: A monthly live staged reading of film scripts as part of the Film Independent at LACMA . In 2020, Reitman directed The Princess Bride , a television adaption of novel of the same name for Quibi featuring an ensemble cast to raise money for World Central Kitchen . Reitman is a self-described libertarian . When Reitman was 16 and still in high school, he moved in with a woman ten years his senior. They separated after 7 years. In 2000, when he

2500-467: A movie about a man who collects air miles excessively. In another sense, it's about a man who meets a woman who's so similar to him that even though they both believe in the idea of living solo, they begin to fall in love. Reitman also later stated that "the movie is about the examination of a philosophy. What if you decided to live hub to hub, with nothing, with nobody?". Up in the Air: Music from

2625-440: A movie geek... [and] shy." In the late 1980s, Reitman began appearing in small acting parts and serving as a production assistant on his father's films. He spent time in the editing rooms of his father's movies, learning the process. Reitman graduated from Harvard-Westlake School in 1995; Reitman was a high jumper in high school, coached by Occidental College Hall-of-Famer Phil Sweeney. Reitman attended Skidmore College and

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2750-416: A prestigious speaking engagement, he abruptly walks offstage mid-presentation and impulsively flies to Chicago to see Alex. Arriving at her front door, he is stunned to discover that she is married and has children. She later phones, chastising him for nearly wrecking her marriage, and says her family is her real life; he is merely an escape. On Ryan's flight home, the crew announces that he has just crossed

2875-400: A private lobbying firm. The MOD squad continues to meet with new members that represent the fast-food, oil, and biohazard industries. Now Naylor runs an agency called Naylor Strategic Relations and consults cellphone industry representatives concerned about claims that cellphones cause brain cancer , he narrates: " Michael Jordan plays ball. Charles Manson kills people. I talk. Everyone has

3000-600: A producer and co-writer in the film, was released in 2024. On October 11, 2024 his feature film Saturday Night was released. It is a comedy thriller about the events directly preceding the live broadcast of Saturday Night Live's very first episode on October 11, 1975. Canadian comedian Dan Ackroyd was a member of that SNL cast and describes the film as a "stand alone masterpiece." Before his feature film career began, Jason Reitman wrote and directed six short films. He financed his first short film, Operation , with money he made by selling ads in desk calendars. The film premiered at

3125-713: A question and answer session following a screening of Up in the Air on Friday October 2, 2009 at the Wheeler Opera House. The Aspen Film Festival ran from September 30, 2009, through October 4, 2009. It was shown twice at the Tinker Street Cinema on the closing day of the Tenth Annual Woodstock Film Festival 2009 on October 4, 2009. Vera Farmiga and Lucy Liu participated in a question and answer session moderated by entertainment journalist Martha Frankel after

3250-670: A screening of Up in the Air at the Paris Theatre, New York City, New York on Thursday November 5, 2009. On November 6, 2009, the New York City Apple Store in SoHo hosted a conversation with director Jason Reitman. On November 6, 2009 The New York Times critic Janet Maslin interviewed Reitman and Kirn during a Q&A session held at the Jacob Burns Film Center after a screening of Up in

3375-499: A screening of Up in the Air , with an introduction by J.K. Simmons, who was in town to accept the festival's Cassavetes Award earlier that afternoon. The 20th Stockholm International Film Festival , which ran from November 18 to November 29, 2009, closed with a screening of Up in the Air on November 29, 2009. The film was released in both DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats on March 9, 2010, and sold 536,441 units in its first week of release, worth $ 9,114,133 of consumer spending. To date

3500-513: A smart blend of humor and emotion with just enough edge for mainstream audiences." On Metacritic , the film has a rating score of 83 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. The sneak preview of Up in the Air was the highest profile hit during the Telluride Film Festival. The film also tied for third place in

3625-501: A sneak preview at that festival. He posted pictures from Telluride on his Twitter account. Prior to the first showing, people waited two hours to get into Up in the Air and hundreds were turned away. The world premiere for Up in the Air occurred at 2009's Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) which ran from September 10 to 19, 2009. The press showing was on Friday September 11, 2009. Public screenings were on September 12, 13, and 19. Reitman originally did not plan to debut

3750-433: A strained reunion with his semi-estranged family, who resent his absence. When Jim, the groom, gets cold feet just prior to the ceremony, Ryan's older sister, Kara, asks him to intervene. Although counter to his personal philosophy, Ryan uses his motivational skills to persuade Jim to proceed with the wedding. Ryan begins questioning his lifestyle and philosophies, and doubts what he lectures others about. In Las Vegas for

3875-415: A sweat." Entertainment Weekly 's Owen Gleiberman agreed, rating the film an A as a "rare and sparkling gem of a movie, directed by Jason Reitman with the polish of a master." Claudia Puig of USA Today praised the film's sense of timeliness, writing, "It's tough to capture an era while it's still happening, yet Up in the Air does so brilliantly, with wit and humanity ... Reitman emerges as

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4000-505: A talent." Director Jason Reitman asked many of his prospective actors and actresses to be in the film by writing each of them a personal letter. Every one of his first choices accepted his or her part and most thanked Reitman for his letter. Reitman was also able to persuade Eckhart, Holmes, Macy, and Lowe to sign on to the film with minimum pay. Mel Gibson 's Icon Productions bought the rights to Buckley's novel before its release. Initially, Gibson saw himself as starring as Nick Naylor in

4125-510: A three-part pretaped sketch for the NBC show Saturday Night Live called "Death by Chocolate," about a walking candy bar, played by episode host Ashton Kutcher , who murders people; stabbing a homeless man, shooting a doctor, cutting off a life support machine on a coma victim and slicing Andy Samberg (dressed as a lumberjack) with a chainsaw. Since 2011, Reitman directs the Live Read series,

4250-526: A total domestic gross of $ 83.8 million and a foreign total of $ 83 million for a worldwide gross of $ 166.8 million. Up in the Air received critical acclaim, with Clooney's and Kendrick's performances receiving widespread praise, as well as the screenplay and editing. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film an approval rating of 90% based on 288 reviews, with a rating average of 8.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Led by charismatic performances by its three leads, director Jason Reitman delivers

4375-423: A vast destination board, contemplating where he should travel next (something Natalie encouraged him to do earlier). Looking up, he lets go of his luggage. Walter Kirn wrote Up in the Air , the book on which the film is based, during a snowbound winter on a ranch in rural Montana , while thinking about airports, airplanes and first-class passengers he had met who would strongly resemble Ryan Bingham. The novel

4500-505: A woman named Alex, a professional who also flies frequently. They begin a casual relationship , meeting up in various cities as their respective schedules allow. Ryan is recalled to his company's offices in Omaha . Natalie Keener, a young, ambitious new hire, promotes cutting costs by conducting layoffs via video-conferencing . Ryan raises concerns that the new system is impersonal and undignified, arguing that Natalie lacks understanding about

4625-557: Is a dual citizen of Canada and the United States. He is the son of director Ivan Reitman , and known for frequently collaborating with screenwriter Diablo Cody . Reitman was born in Montreal , Quebec , the son of Geneviève Robert, an actress sometimes billed as Geneviève Deloir, and Slovak-Jewish film director Ivan Reitman (1946–2022). Reitman has two younger sisters: Catherine Reitman , an actress, producer and writer, who

4750-540: Is a 2005 American satirical black comedy film written and directed by Jason Reitman and starring Aaron Eckhart , based on the 1994 novel by Christopher Buckley . It follows the efforts of Big Tobacco 's chief spokesman, Nick Naylor, who lobbies on behalf of cigarettes using heavy spin tactics while also trying to remain a role model for his 12-year-old son. Maria Bello , Adam Brody , Sam Elliott , Katie Holmes , Rob Lowe , William H. Macy , J. K. Simmons , and Robert Duvall appear in supporting roles. The film

4875-414: Is a pro-smoking movie. It's about freedom of choice." Buckley said about the decision to omit smoking that "[I]t was very deliberate, and I think rather cool." The tobacco industry itself has been reluctant to take any sides or comment on the film. When New York Times reporter Michael Jankowsky contacted an Altria publicist about the tobacco giant's reaction, she "hesitated to respond, insisting that

5000-463: Is a slickly crafted disappointment. [It] feels tailor-made for George Clooney, who is very good. But the stakes remain frustratingly low and it's one of those contemporary middlebrow projects that asks us to root for a genial, shallow individual as he learns to be a little less the man he was." Julian Sancton of Vanity Fair wrote, "There are two movies in Up in the Air : one about a guy who's flying around

5125-676: Is about to appear before a U.S. Senate committee to fight the bill, he is kidnapped by a clandestine group and covered in nicotine patches . Awakening in a hospital, he learns he has survived due to his high nicotine tolerance from heavy smoking, but he is now hypersensitive to nicotine and can never smoke again. Meanwhile, Naylor is seduced by a young reporter named Heather Holloway into revealing secret information about his life and career. She makes it public via an exposé, criticizing his business activities and accusing him of training his son Joey to follow his amoral example. This results in negative PR for Naylor, which costs him his job. Naylor tells

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5250-701: Is credited as Executive Producer of Thank You for Smoking . His participation was discussed during episode #1470 of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast with Musk as Rogan’s guest. It was also discussed during episode #49 of Lex Fridman's podcast. Other members of the tight-knit and influential " PayPal Mafia " credited alongside Sacks and Musk as Executive Producers are Max Levchin and Peter Thiel (the Mafia's "don"). The film received mostly positive reviews from film critics. Film-review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 86% of 182 critics have given

5375-447: Is fervently against the tobacco lobby". Many felt the film's relatively sappy ending negated the slicker, darker tone of the book. The Washington Post ' s Desson Thomson thought that "as written and directed by Jason Reitman, Smoking is filtered too heavily with moral redemption." Reitman has maintained his purpose was to match the tone and satirical message of the book as closely as possible. "What I wanted people to think about

5500-600: Is it a tragedy. It's an observant look at how a man does a job." Calling the film "a slickly engaging piece of lightweight existentialism ," Todd McCarthy wrote in Variety that "Clooney owns his role in the way first-rate film stars can, so infusing the character with his own persona that everything he does seems natural and right. The timing in the Clooney-Farmiga scenes is like splendid tennis." The New York Times ' Manohla Dargis especially appreciated

5625-462: Is sent to meet with Lorne Lutch, the cancer -stricken man who once played the Marlboro Man in cigarette ads and is now campaigning against cigarettes. As his son watches, Naylor successfully offers Lutch a suitcase of money for his silence. Senator Finistirre, one of Naylor's most vehement critics, promotes a bill to add a skull and crossbones POISON warning to cigarette packaging. As Naylor

5750-514: Is three years younger, and Caroline Reitman, a nurse, who is twelve years younger. Reitman's father was born in Czechoslovakia , to Jewish parents who were Holocaust survivors . Reitman's paternal grandfather ran a dry cleaner and then a car wash. His mother is from a Christian background and of French-Canadian descent; she converted to Judaism . When he was still a child, his family moved to Los Angeles . His father, Ivan, directed

5875-417: Is unclear as to whether or not Wilson is finished with the script. Hard C Productions produced films The Ornate Anatomy of Living Things and Jennifer's Body . Anatomy has been written by Matthew Spicer and Max Winkler, and will revolve around "a Gotham bookstore clerk who discovers a museum devoted to his life". Jennifer's Body is a horror comedy written by Diablo Cody and starring Megan Fox , about

6000-500: Is usually from 22 to 26 weeks. Reitman was involved in post-production while shooting. The film was shot entirely on location and Glauberman stayed in Los Angeles to cut. She would send him scenes every day or every other day as she finished them, and he would view them. He flew home every weekend to work with her for a few hours on Saturday or Sunday in order to stay on schedule. Editing helped determine how nonverbal moments shape

6125-500: The Billy Wilder bracket: Up In The Air is as eloquent about today's executive culture as The Apartment was about that of 1960. It is a brutal, desolate film – but also a superb existential rom-com, and the most entertaining lesson in contemporary socio-economics that you could hope for." Roger Ebert gave the film four stars and wrote, "This isn't a comedy. If it were, it would be hard to laugh in these last days of 2009. Nor

6250-513: The Jacob Burns Film Center following a screening of the film. Following the positive response the film received at the Telluride Film Festival, Paramount intended to move Up in the Air from its original release date of December 4, 2009, planning for a November 13 limited release going wide before the Thanksgiving holiday. However, this schedule conflicted with the release of The Men Who Stare at Goats , another Clooney film. The film

6375-838: The London Film Festival , the St. Louis International Film Festival , the Starz Denver Film Festival , and the Stockholm International Film Festival . It was the only American film to compete for the Golden Marc'Aurelio Audience Award for Best Film at the International Rome Film Festival . On November 6, The New York Times film critic Janet Maslin interviewed Reitman and Kirn at

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6500-557: The Sundance Film Festival in 1998. He was a guest on The Howard Stern Show on April 10, 2008; when he was asked if he would direct Ghostbusters III and cast Howard, he said: "Do you know how many times I get asked if I want to do Ghostbusters III ? Looking at my career so far, I mean, if you just looked at my two films, I would make the most boring Ghostbusters movie. It would just be people talking about ghosts, there wouldn't be any ghost-busting in it." Stern,

6625-405: The $ 25 million film. Producers set up a St. Louis production office on January 5, 2009. Filming began in St. Louis on March 3, 2009, and continued through the end of April. The film includes 80 different sets at 50 locations throughout the St. Louis area, including St. Louis Lambert International Airport Concourse C and Concourse D (which played the part of several airports across America),

6750-516: The 2007 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in December 2007. It was Roger Ebert 's favorite film of 2007 and received Oscar nominations for Best Picture , Elliot Page 's performance as the title character, Diablo Cody 's original screenplay, and Reitman himself for Best Director . Reitman did win other awards for his work on Juno , including Best Director at the 2008 Canadian Comedy Awards . The film grossed over $ 140 million at

6875-506: The Air , both of which made well over $ 150,000,000 worldwide. As of 2017, the movie is the 14th highest-grossing political satire film. The main contention most critics had with the film was its lack of continuity. Karina Longworth of Cinematical notes " Thank You for Smoking has a vague emotional arc, but narratively it plays out like a constellation of sitcom sketches, connected by the most tenuous threads of character evolution", while Empire observes "the problem's not so much with

7000-536: The Air a wide release on December 23, 2009. Up in the Air was met with critical acclaim, for Reitman's screenplay and direction, and the performances by Clooney, Farmiga, and Kendrick. It was also a box office success, grossing $ 166 million worldwide against a $ 25 million budget. The film received several accolades, including six nominations each at the Oscars and the Golden Globes , winning Best Screenplay at

7125-476: The Air cast 2,000 extras with 15 to 25 Missouri actors in minor speaking roles. About 250 extras were used from the Omaha, Nebraska, area. They were used for filming inside and outside the terminal at Eppley Airfield , while Clooney acted out most of his scenes inside the terminal. While filming in St. Louis and Detroit, Reitman placed an ad in the paper asking if people who recently lost their job wanted to be in

7250-445: The Air with personal appearances at film festivals and other showings. He stated that he could relate to and enjoys the idea of Ryan Bingham's lifestyle. "Yesterday [October 28, 2009] I took my 10th flight in 10 days so I live that life myself and I kinda enjoy it," Reitman said, "I think when you're in an airplane it's the last refuge for the people who enjoy being alone and reading a book." Reitman documented his experiences promoting

7375-471: The Air . The question and answer session was followed by a reception in the Jane Peck Gallery. The Boston Sunday Night Film Club had a free screening on Sunday November 8, 2009, with a Q&A session with Reitman following the screening. Up in the Air was the centerpiece for the 18th Annual St. Louis International Film Festival , which was held from November 12 to November 22, 2009. The film

7500-598: The Best Directorial Debut award from the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures . The Thank You for Smoking soundtrack was released April 14, 2006, and the CD came out on April 18, 2006. The first nine tracks are popular songs about smoking taken from the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. The famous track " Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette) " opens the film. The final four tracks are instrumentals from

7625-772: The Mansion House apartments in downtown St. Louis, Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark, Hilton St. Louis Airport, DHR International building (8000 Maryland Ave.), the Cheshire Inn, the GenAmerica building (700 Market) , Renaissance Grand Hotel, Maplewood United Methodist Church, and Affton High School . The film shot at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport for five days, twenty hours each day. In October 2008, Production Services of Omaha scouted locations for three days of filming in late April with Clooney. Some of

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7750-675: The Motion Picture is the official soundtrack to the film, released by Warner Music on November 9, 2009, and composed by Rolfe Kent , who recorded his score with a 55-piece ensemble of the Hollywood Studio Symphony at the Sony Scoring Stage. It was orchestrated by Tony Blondal . Kevin Renick wrote the song "Up in the Air" two years prior to knowing that Reitman was working on a film adaptation to

7875-532: The Smith Rafael Film Center, San Rafael, California . The Mill Valley Film Festival ran from October 8 to October 18, 2009. It was also shown four times at the 53rd London Film Festival which was held from October 14–19, 2009. Up in the Air was the only American film to compete for the Golden Marc'Aurelio Audience Award for Best Film at the fourth annual International Rome Film Festival which ran from October 15 through October 23, 2009. It

8000-550: The St. Louis Ballpark Hilton and the Airport Hilton. Both are featured in the film. On November 14, 2009, Paramount flew 50 members of the press to New York with Anna Kendrick, Sad Brad Smith and representatives of American Airlines to promote Up in the Air . The film was shown on the aircraft's video monitors during the flight from New York to Los Angeles. American Airlines provided the Boeing 767 gratis. Smith performed

8125-520: The Sundance Film Festival, internet rumors claimed that an extended nudity scene between Eckhart and Holmes had been cut down after pressure from Holmes' husband, Tom Cruise . Reitman and executives denied that such a scene had ever existed but welcomed the publicity it garnered for the film. Reitman later said that "Half the questions that I've been getting are thoughtful questions about the moral of lobbying and how does satire work. And

8250-819: The Tivoli Theater. Up in the Air closed the Austin Film Festival on October 29, 2009, at the Paramount. Reitman attended the screening. The Austin Film Festival ran from October 22 to October 29, 2009. The Palm Springs International Film Society showed Up in the Air on Thursday, October 29, 2009, at the Regal Cinema in Palm Springs, California . Anna Kendrick was present at the showing. Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick hosted

8375-610: The Toronto International Film Festival Indiewire poll. Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times wrote, " Up in the Air makes it look easy. Not just in its casual and apparently effortless excellence, but in its ability to blend entertainment and insight, comedy and poignancy, even drama and reality, things that are difficult by themselves but a whole lot harder in combination. This film does all that and never seems to break

8500-465: The U.S. box office, making it the largest success of Reitman's career and more successful than any of his father's films since Kindergarten Cop . Brad Silberling was originally attached to direct the film, but he dropped out over casting differences. Reitman was in the middle of writing a screenplay when he came on board to direct Juno and, at one point, he expressed intent to finish writing and to direct this screenplay. In March 2006, Reitman formed

8625-478: The U.S. on April 14, 2006, and has gone on to gross $ 24,793,509 domestically and $ 14,529,518 outside the country, for a total of $ 39,323,027 worldwide. The highest it ever rated at the North American box office was #8 on the weekend of its wide release. Although the film's box office performance was excellent for Reitman's directorial debut, it paled in comparison with his next two films, Juno and Up in

8750-412: The abyss and averted their eyes ... [the film] warns that you can't go home again – and then, full of false cheer and false consciousness, pretends you can." Shave Magazine 's Jake Tomlinson gave the film four out of five stars and wrote, "There is a very strong sense of humor as well as emotional depth, yet the scope of the film sometimes limits these sentiments. As a moviegoer, this film provides

8875-431: The adaptation. However, the satiric nature of the book meant the studio lacked a way to film it and the project lacked a usable script. Reitman became interested in heading an adaptation after reading the book, and independently wrote a draft for Icon executives after he discovered they owned the rights to the film. Reitman saw himself as a comic writer with a voice similar to Buckley's, and consciously attempted to maintain

9000-456: The book's film rights, and the elder Reitman commissioned a screenplay from Ted Griffin and Nicholas Griffin, who used some elements from Turner's script in their work. Jason Reitman then developed his own screenplay, incorporating some of the original script that was (unbeknownst to Reitman) written by Turner. Some Turner inventions that were used in the film include Ryan's boilerplate termination speech ("Anyone who ever built an empire or changed

9125-437: The book. He had been laid off at the time, and was an unrecorded, unemployed St. Louis musician. When Renick researched the film he discovered that the theme of the film was much the same as the song he had written. "The song is about uncertainty, disconnection and loneliness, while alluding to career transition," Renick explained. "It's a melancholy song, and a narrative about finding out where your life's going to go." He handed

9250-440: The brands did not pay for the exposure; rather, they waived the fees for the producers to shoot on location, such as at AA's airport areas and inside Hilton hotels. Reitman expressed his desire to use actual brands as he finds them less distracting. The post-production schedule for Up in the Air was shorter than Jason Reitman's previous two films. The editing team had only 16 to 17 weeks post-schedule, whereas an editing deadline

9375-414: The country firing people, and one about a commitment-phobe who's flying away from responsibility and a shot at true love, as embodied by Farmiga. There is no attempt to braid these two threads together, and that's where the movie feels unsatisfying." J. Hoberman of The Village Voice wrote, "Like Juno , Up in the Air conjures a troubling reality and then wishes it away. The filmmakers have peeked into

9500-626: The cover) while browsing in the Los Angeles bookstore Book Soup . Reitman persuaded his father Ivan Reitman to purchase the book's film rights, and the elder Reitman commissioned a screenplay from Ted and Nicholas Griffin , who used some elements from Turner's script in their own work. Jason Reitman then developed his own screenplay, incorporating some of the elements from the Griffins' script that had (unbeknownst to Reitman) originated with Turner. Some of Turner's inventions that were utilized in

9625-531: The crop circle on fire, are seen in the Paramount trailer, but are not used in the film. The pilot who flies the Boeing 747 that carried the Space Shuttle flew the aircraft for the aerial shots. The film features heavy product placement , with American Airlines, Chrysler , Hertz , Travelpro, and Hilton Hotels all featured prominently. Competing brands are displayed as blurs in scene backgrounds or are replaced with pseudonyms in dialogue. However,

9750-449: The erotic thriller Chloe , theatrically released by Sony Pictures Classics on March 26, 2010. Reitman helped persuade Amanda Seyfried to star in the film. The film enjoyed commercial success and became director Atom Egoyan 's biggest moneymaker ever. On January 15, 2019, Reitman announced he would be working on Ghostbusters: Afterlife , a continuation of the original Ghostbusters films directed by his father. Originally set for

9875-438: The film 3.5 out of 4 stars. USA Today film critic Claudia Puig called it a "razor-sharp satire" that was "the wittiest dark comedy of the year thus far. It has appeal to all sides of the political spectrum." She praised the film for a "quirky and intelligent rarity that elicits wry smiles and hearty laughs alike" and compared it in tone to Election (1999). Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times also favorably reviewed

10000-507: The film a positive review, with a rating average of 7.32/10. The site's general consensus is that "Loaded with delightfully unscrupulous characters and a witty, cynical script, Thank You For Smoking is a sharp satire with a brilliantly smarmy lead performance from Aaron Eckhart." Metacritic , which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from film critics, has a rating score of 71 based on 36 reviews. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone describing it as "acutely hilarious" and gave

10125-488: The film and in the Sunday noontime WFF Actor's Dialogue panel. The 2009 Hamptons International Film Festival showed Up in the Air on October 10, 2009, during its run at Long Island, New York 's east end from October 8 to October 12, 2009. The Spotlight Tribute held during the 32nd edition of Mill Valley Film Festival hosted an interview with Reitman and a screening of Up in the Air on Wednesday October 14, 2009 in

10250-533: The film at TIFF, since it was not scheduled to be ready for another three months. He rushed production to keep his Toronto debut streak going. The first clip of the film debuted on Apple Inc. website on September 8, 2009. The first trailer was available on iTunes on September 10, 2009, and on September 18, 2009, it screened before the new movies The Informant! and Love Happens . The second trailer became available on October 1, 2009. Reitman received Aspen Film's first New Directions Award and participated in

10375-573: The film has sold 1,162,509 home copies, equivalent to $ 18,517,122 of sales. Up in the Air was released in 15 theaters in the U.S. on December 4, 2009, and ranked number 13 with $ 1.2 million, an average of $ 78,763 per theater. After three days it expanded to 72 theaters and made $ 2.4 million ($ 33,255 per theater) during the second weekend. In its third weekend, it broke into the top 10 as it widened to 175 theaters and came in at number 8 with $ 3.2 million. The film expanded to 1,895 theaters on December 23. It completed its domestic run on April 8, 2010, with

10500-402: The film looks dated and poorly reflects the industry with depictions of tobacco executives as highly paid sleazeballs." Though Thank You for Smoking pokes fun at the industry, the novel it was adapted from is a much harsher critic of tobacco lobbyists, and the major tobacco companies have mostly kept quiet on the issue. Thank You for Smoking did not receive a wide variety of nominations from

10625-524: The film's distribution. Sacks later claimed that he never reached a firm deal with Paramount, and noted that Fox Searchlight had offered $ 7 million for distribution, while Paramount Classics offered $ 6.7 million. Allegedly, Sacks called Paramount at 1:15 a.m. saying he was uncomfortable with their initial deal. Ruth Vitale, co-president of Paramount Classics said "He can't resell the film" and noted "I can only think that because of his naiveté and inexperience he would do this." Serial entrepreneur Elon Musk

10750-405: The film's strong female roles, noting that "the ferocious Ms. Kendrick, her ponytail swinging like an ax, grabs every scene she's in," but wrote that the film "is an assertively, and unapologetically, tidy package, from its use of romance to instill some drama ... and the mope rock tunes that Mr. Reitman needlessly overuses." The Chicago Tribune 's Michael Phillips wrote, " Up in the Air

10875-430: The film, calling it a "very smart and funny movie" that had been "shrewdly" adapted to film from novel. Thank You for Smoking initially opened at the box office in the U.S. as a limited release in just five theaters, and grossed $ 262,923 in its debut weekend for an average of $ 52,584 per theater, making it one of the top 100 average gross per theater films of all time. The film was later released in 1,015 theaters across

11000-448: The film, even Robert Duvall's filtered cigarette maverick "The Captain" is shown repeatedly drinking mint juleps rather than smoking cigarettes. Some critics argue that Reitman's reluctance to show the characters smoking is further confirmation of the film's anti-smoking stance. Reitman has issued statements disagreeing with this view. He said in an interview that "While it's not anti-smoking, it's very important people don't think that this

11125-775: The film. The interviews ran for about ten minutes on what it was like to lose their job in a poor economy, and after that the interviewer would "fire" them on camera and ask them to either respond the way they did the day they lost their job or, if they preferred, the way they wished they had responded. Filming was mostly done in the St. Louis area. Several scenes were filmed at the Berry and McNamara Terminals at Detroit Metro Airport in late February 2009 with minimal filming in Omaha, in Las Vegas and in Miami, Florida . Missouri and St. Louis leaders provided $ 4.1 million in tax credits for

11250-592: The film. He took photos of everyone who interviewed him and recorded videos in every city he visited. He edited these images into a short video titled Lost In The Air: The Jason Reitman Press Tour Simulator . Up in the Air was screened as a "sneak preview" at the Telluride Film Festival on September 5, 2009, before its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on September 12. The film

11375-511: The films Ghostbusters , Ghostbusters II , Stripes and Kindergarten Cop . Reitman grew up on set, and has photos of himself as a baby on the set of Animal House in 1978; Bill Murray described Reitman as "a pain in the ass" while filming Ghostbusters , with Dan Aykroyd joking that "he was directing back then". Such experiences showed him that making movies is "a job that people do, that it's not just this piece of magic that happens". Jason described his childhood self as "a loser...

11500-546: The final film include Ryan's boilerplate termination speech ("Anyone who ever built an empire or changed the world sat where you're sitting right now..."), a key plot point involving a suicide, and the character of Ryan's partner (written by Turner as male). Reitman initially attempted to claim sole credit for writing the film, and later admitted to being confused when the Writers Guild of America ruled that he should share credit with Turner. He and Turner later appeared at

11625-467: The firing process and how to handle emotionally vulnerable people. His boss, Craig Gregory, has Natalie accompany a reluctant Ryan on his next round of terminations to observe the process. Ryan tutors Natalie on traveling more efficiently using smaller luggage and moving quickly through airport security. As they travel together, Natalie challenges Ryan's philosophies on life, particularly regarding relationships and love, but Ryan defends his lifestyle. During

11750-464: The first meeting between Ryan and Alex, who become lovers. "In a scene like that, there is a sort of playfulness that goes on," editor, Dana E. Glauberman said. "There were little looks that they gave each other. Sometimes I stayed a beat longer on a take to get that little sparkle in their eyes ... You can see a lot of playfulness in the quick cuts back and forth when they are teasing each other, but then there are also certain moments that Vera would give

11875-399: The hype machine might hard-sell the idea that the movie "skewers both sides of the issue", "any child old enough to recognize Joe Camel can tell that underneath the sarcastic joking, this is a bitterly anti-smoking film." Palopoli goes on to say "the supposed case against the anti-smoking lobby has been reduced mostly to some limp jokes at the expense of William H. Macy's senator character, who

12000-690: The latter. A number of critics and publications included Up in the Air on their lists of the best films of 2009. Ryan Bingham works for an American human resources consultancy firm specializing in employment-termination assistance. His work constantly takes him around the country, conducting company layoffs on behalf of employers. Ryan also gives motivational speeches, using the analogy, "What's in Your Backpack?" to extol living free of burdensome relationships and material possessions. A frequent flyer, Ryan aspires to earn ten million frequent flyer miles with American Airlines . While traveling, he meets

12125-496: The major award circuits; however, it did garner two Golden Globe nominations in its year for Best Picture (Musical or Comedy) and Best Actor in the same film genre for Aaron Eckhart's portrayal of Nick Naylor. The Broadcast Film Critics Association recognized Cameron Bright for his performance as Joey with a nomination for Best Young Actor, and also gave the film itself a nomination in the Comedy category. Jason Reitman received

12250-484: The movie doesn't come packaged with a strong anti-smoking message, because it doesn't need to: Everyone knows that smoking is bad for you, including people who continue to do it." There is no point during the film at which any of the characters smoke. Dargis of The New York Times unwittingly states, " Thank You for Smoking is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). It includes mild violence, discreet sex and, of course, countless cigarettes." In

12375-541: The movie has since developed. However, ABC's show Better Off Ted has been described as a "TV-sized version of Thank You for Smoking ". Up in the Air (2009 film) Reitman promoted Up in the Air with personal appearances at film festivals, starting with Telluride on September 5, 2009. Following a Los Angeles premiere at the Mann Village Theater in November, Paramount Pictures gave Up in

12500-568: The movie's aim, as with the number of targets it's aiming at." Other reviewers criticized the film's overacting. Manohla Dargis of The New York Times notes "although he [Reitman] steers his cast through its paces with facility, he tends to oversell jokes that were already plenty loud in the book." The Hollywood Reporter wrote "While often entertaining, the film keeps hitting the same comic notes", and Salon said, "The actors here are entertaining enough to watch, even if they sometimes seem to be taking their mission (whatever they think it is)

12625-421: The news, quits via text message. The remote-layoff program is stopped, and Ryan is sent back on the road. Natalie applies to the same San Francisco company where she had previously declined a position, having followed her now ex-boyfriend to Omaha. Impressed by her qualifications and Ryan's glowing written recommendation, the interviewer hires her. The film concludes with Ryan at the airport, standing in front of

12750-586: The original score of Rolfe Kent, who had been nominated for best original score for his work on Sideways . AllMusic wrote that "The thread is obvious, but the selections sound handpicked rather than researched solely on the basis of their subject matter." Other critics have called the soundtrack "demented." The DVD was released on October 3, 2006, by 20th Century Fox, with both a widescreen and fullscreen edition. Each DVD contains two commentaries, one exclusively with Reitman and another with Reitman, Eckhart, and Koechner. Other extras include thirteen deleted scenes,

12875-499: The part played by Farmiga, he cited her ability to walk a fine line between aggressiveness and femininity. On Kendrick, Reitman cited that he was inspired by her performance in Rocket Science . On Clooney, he said, "If you're going to make a movie about a guy who fires people for a living and you still want to like him, that actor better be damn charming and I don't think there's a more charming actor alive than George Clooney. I

13000-500: The press about his affair with Holloway and promises to clear the names of everyone mentioned in her article. He then appears before the Senate committee, admitting to the dangers of smoking but arguing that public awareness is already high enough without extra warnings. He emphasizes consumer choice and responsibility and claims that if tobacco companies are guilty of tobacco-related deaths, then perhaps Finistirre's state of Vermont , as

13125-425: The production company "Hard C Productions" with producing partner Daniel Dubiecki . The company had an overall deal with Fox Searchlight Pictures , the company that distributed Reitman's first two films. Reitman described his production company's goal as being to produce "small subversive comedy that is independent but accessible". Reitman states that he and Dubiecki "want to make unusual films, and anything that turns

13250-509: The project, it was brought to NBC's cable network, USA . James Dodson was set up as head writer as well as co-executive producer alongside Sacks. USA's chief programming executive Jeff Wachtel initially described the character as living between the morally ambiguous character of the film and Robin Hood. The series planned to adopt a different title and sought to start where the movie left off. The project never materialized and no official series of

13375-490: The ranks of the recently downsized. "Hidden within a film that seems to be about corporate termination and the economy is a movie about the decision whether to be alone or not," noted Reitman," in an interview conducted just prior to the film's nationwide release. Sheldon Turner and Reitman's Up in the Air screenplay won the Golden Globe Award for best screenplay in 2010. Reitman was also an executive producer of

13500-511: The rest is just, 'Is there actually any nude footage out there?'" Controversy also arose after the film was screened at the Toronto Film Festival. Thank You for Smoking was met with tremendous popular reception and afterward disputed claims emerged as to who had signed a distribution deal with Sacks. Fox Searchlight Pictures and Paramount Classics both issued competing press releases claiming that they had secured rights for

13625-418: The satiric flavor of the book for his draft. The script was received favorably by Icon, and Gibson called Reitman to tell him how much he loved it. But over the next three years, the project languished because of a lack of financing and big studio interest, as most studios wanted Reitman to rewrite his script to include a more anti-smoking and uplifting ending. According to Reitman, studios wanted Naylor to have

13750-546: The scenes were shot inside the Visitor's Bureau and in a condo in the Old Market area of downtown Omaha and at the south end of the main terminal at Eppley Airfield. Reitman needed fifty days to film Up in the Air , eight of which were devoted to aerial shooting. The aerial shots turned out to be more difficult than expected. He was unable to use material from three days of the aerial filming. Many aerial shots, such as

13875-447: The success of Thank You for Smoking , Reitman mentioned in an interview that his next film would be adapting another book (a "white collar satire") into a film. He also mentioned that he had plans to work with Buckley again on an original project. Although the first of these projects would eventually become Up in the Air , this second project has not come to fruition. His second film, Juno , generated great buzz after it premiered at

14000-489: The ten-million mile mark. The airline's chief pilot is aboard to personally congratulate Ryan and notes he is the youngest person to achieve the milestone. When asked where he is from, Ryan, realizing he has no real home, simply says, "here." Back in Omaha, Ryan transfers a million frequent flyer miles to Julie and Jim so they can have a honeymoon. Craig informs Ryan that a laid-off employee has committed suicide (the same one who had threatened to do so earlier). Natalie, upset over

14125-634: The trip, Natalie's boyfriend unceremoniously dumps her by text message . Ryan and Alex comfort the shattered Natalie. On a video termination test run, Ryan's earlier concerns prove valid; when one laid-off person breaks down on camera, Natalie is unable to properly console him and another employee threatens suicide. Natalie castigates Ryan for his inability to commit to Alex, despite their obvious compatibility; he dismisses her criticisms and chastises her for lacking empathy and never appreciating her surroundings. Before returning home, Ryan, taking Alex along, heads to Wisconsin for his sister Julie's wedding. He has

14250-425: The world sat where you're sitting right now ..."), a key plot point involving a suicide, and the character of Ryan's partner (written by Turner as a man). Reitman initially attempted to claim sole credit for writing the film, then later admitted to confusion when the Writers Guild of America ruled that he should share credit with Turner, whose script Reitman claimed to have never read. He and Turner later appeared at

14375-531: Was 23, Reitman started dating his next-door neighbor, writer Michele Lee, with whom he co-wrote the 2004 comedic short Consent . They married and have one child, a daughter named Josie, born in 2006. After being together for ten years, Reitman filed for divorce in June 2011 and was divorced as of 2014. Executive producer Acting roles Academy Awards BAFTA Awards Golden Globe Awards Other awards Thank You for Smoking Thank You for Smoking

14500-417: Was eventually released on December 4 in fifteen theaters spanning twelve markets, broadening in the next week to 72 theaters and going into wide release on December 23, 2009. It was released in other countries beginning in early 2010. Up in the Air was shown at a sneak preview on September 5, 2009, and September 6, 2009, at the Telluride Film Festival . Reitman had fueled speculation that he would give

14625-569: Was going to major in pre-med studies before transferring to the University of Southern California (USC) to major in English/Creative Writing. At USC, he performed with improv group Commedus Interruptus. Reitman started out making short films during his time at USC. Throughout his 20s, instead of accepting offers to make commercial feature films, Reitman began making his own short films and directing commercials. Although he

14750-715: Was initially not scheduled to be completed for another three months, but Reitman rushed production in order to maintain a streak of debuting his films at TIFF. During October and November 2009, Up in the Air screened at festivals including the Aspen Filmfest , the Woodstock Film Festival , the Hamptons International Film Festival , the Mill Valley Film Festival , the Austin Film Festival ,

14875-420: Was offered the opportunity to direct Dude, Where's My Car? on two occasions, he declined. Reitman's first feature film, Thank You for Smoking , opened in 2005. Reitman developed the Christopher Buckley novel into a screenplay and, eventually, a film. The film was a commercial and critical success. It grossed over $ 39 million worldwide by the end of its run, and was nominated for two Golden Globes . After

15000-539: Was political correctness. I wanted them to think about ideas of personal responsibility and personal choice. I think cigarettes are a wonderful location for that discussion because cigarettes are something we know all the answers to", he posits. "I wanted to look into this idea of why we feel the need to tell each other how to live and why we can't take personal responsibility for our own actions when we fall ill from things that we know are dangerous." Stephanie Zacharek of Salon agreed with Reitman, saying "Despite its title,

15125-479: Was published in 2001 and, shortly after, Sheldon Turner discovered the book and wrote a screenplay adaptation, which he sold to DreamWorks in 2003. Kirn can be seen in the film sitting beside Ryan at the initial meeting in Omaha. Director Jason Reitman later came upon the novel (initially attracted by the Christopher Buckley blurb on the cover) while browsing in the Los Angeles bookstore Book Soup . Reitman persuaded his father, Ivan Reitman , to purchase

15250-495: Was released in a limited run on March 17, 2006, and had a wide release on April 14. It received largely positive reviews, with particular praise for its screenplay, humor, themes, and Eckhart's performance. As of 2007, the film had grossed a total of more than $ 39 million worldwide. The film was released on DVD in the US on October 3, 2006, and in the UK on January 8, 2007. Nick Naylor is

15375-473: Was shown November 14, 2009 at the Tivoli Theater in University City, Missouri with Jason Reitman and Michael Beugg in attendance. Kevin Renick, the St. Louis musician who wrote the song Up in the Air , performed half an hour prior to the screening. Yukon Jake, who performed in the wedding scene in Up in the Air , provided entertainment during the party prior to the screening. The party took place at

15500-524: Was shown three times from October 17 to October 19, 2009. Reitman showed Up in the Air at ShowEast in Orlando, Florida on October 26 and October 27, 2009, and asked for the movie theater owners and managers to support the picture as fervently as they did his film Juno two years earlier. Reitman also held a Q&A and pep talk with film students at the University of Central Florida . The first St. Louis press screening happened on October 28, 2009, at

15625-511: Was very lucky he said yes." Reitman said, on the B.S. Report with Bill Simmons , that he considered Steve Martin for the part if Clooney declined the role. Reitman said that he would have changed the movie with Martin and given Martin "his Lost in Translation ." Approximately 500 people applied to be extras in the film during the open call on January 24, 2009, and January 25, 2009, at Crestwood Court in St. Louis, Missouri . Up in

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