Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum unite for 1st time in 'Fly Me to the Moon' first look

Johansson plays Kelly Jones, a member of NASA's marketing team entrusted with improving the agency's public image, while Tatum plays launch director Cole Davis. As the operation is scrutinised, Jones is forced to create a fake moon landing as a backup plan, laying the scenario for hilarious pandemonium.

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Johansson shared that she didn't know Tatum, 43, before making 'Fly Me to the Moon', despite having "many friends in common."

"Channing is such an easy-going actor, good-spirited and professional. Falling in love with him onscreen was pretty easy. He's such a likeable person," she said, adding of their characters, "Kelly and Cole are such opposites. It was fun to play that dynamic with Channing," according to People

The actress, who is also a producer on the film, describes her character Kelly as a "very modern woman living in a time where women were often underestimated."

"She uses that to her advantage and is always a few steps ahead," added Johansson.

The 'Fly Me to the Moon' cast also features Nick Dillenburg, Anna Garcia, Jim Rash, Noah Robbins, Colin Woodell, Christian Zuber, Donald Elise Watkins, Ray Romano and Woody Harrelson. As Johansson recalled, they "all just laughed a ton and had a great time. It was a total pleasure to be on set with all that good energy."

The film is directed by Greg Berlanti and written by Rose Gilroy from the story by Bill Kirstein and Keenan Flynn.

"The inspiration for this story," said Berlanti, "was to craft a big, fun, smart original movie around whether or not the American government could have possibly faked the Apollo 11 moon landing, which is still the most-watched live TV event in the history of the world and has since become one of the most talked about conspiracy theories."

The director explained that recreating the moon landing and the methods in which it could have been "faked" at the time was "most challenging" -- and "required a set the size of the baseball field."

That, plus "months of construction and design work with all of our department heads, wire work with stunt actors, lighting work with lights from that era and a movement coach working with our 'fake astronauts' to match step for step Buzz [Aldrin] and Neil [Armstrong's] first historic walk on the moon."

"They are some of the most famous images in history," he said, "and we needed to match them completely -- but in a way they could have only done in 1969."

Berlanti said, that even with "rockets going off and moonwalks in the film, the real event is watching all of these incredible actors together."

"Scarlett and Channing had never done a film together, and I'm sure audiences will want them to do many more after this one," he said. "They're each individually a dream, both personally and professionally. They have the rarest of gifts with comedy and drama."

"Watching them act together was like watching two great rockstars do a duet for the first time," continued Berlanti. "From rehearsal through the end of shooting, working with the two of them was one of the great pinch-me moments of my life."

Johansson said 'Fly Me to the Moon' is appealing because it is "totally original."

"It's not derivative of anything else, it doesn't follow a formula," she said. "I think audiences haven't been offered a big-idea movie that is both funny and poignant and original in a long time, and they are hungry for that. The film is totally entertaining and fresh. I'm very proud of it for its newness and scope."

'Fly Me to the Moon', an Apple Original Film, will be in theatres, in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment, on July 12, before later streaming on Apple TV+, reported People. (ANI)