NASA Thinks You Should Know Apollo 18 Isn't Real

Apollo18NASA.jpgWhen the Weinstein Co. first announced their Apollo 18 project last year, they sent out a press release stating that Russian producer Timur Bekmambetov had discovered actual Apollo 18 footage that would be incorporated in their "documentary." Just three hours later, the studio retracted the release with a new one that curiously did not mention the footage. But then they released a trailer for Apollo 18 that opened by claiming "the following is the recovered footage from Apollo 18." Confusing much? On the eve of the film's release, NASA is finally coming forward to talk about Apollo 18.

No, not an actual Apollo 18 mission -- NASA still claims that the last manned trip to the moon was Apollo 17 in 1972 -- but about the Weinstein Co.'s project that has been blurring the line between fact and fiction in an (ineffective) ploy to generate buzz.

"Apollo 18 is not a documentary," Bert Ulrich, NASA's liaison for multimedia, film and television collaborations, told the L.A. Times. "The film is a work of fiction, and we always knew that. We were minimally involved with this picture. We never even saw a rough cut. The idea of portraying the Apollo 18 mission as authentic is simply a marketing ploy. Perhaps a bit of a Blair Witch Project strategy to generate hype."

So there you have it. Also, you might be interested in knowing that while NASA had no part of this weekend's feature, the organization did support Michael Bay in his effort to make this summer's other lunar-themed film, Transformers: Dark of the Moon by letting him film on its shuttle launch pads at the Kennedy Space Center.

But back to the main issue: Did anyone out there really think Apollo 18 was a real documentary?

· NASA reaches its outer limit [LAT]



Comments

  • The WInchester says:

    I thought it was the 19 years in waiting visual accompaniment to the They Might Be Giants album.
    Looks like it's Shark Night 3D this weekend afterall.

  • Cory says:

    I think the issue here is people might mistakenly believe there was an actual Apollo 18, when the program ended after Apollo 17.

  • Martini Shark says:

    I want to know if this means that despite the error they will still go ahead with showing this in classrooms as a teaching aid, like "An Inconvenient Truth"?

  • gotfondue says:

    Just proves how dumb the gernal public is.

  • rainestorm says:

    ... and the unnecessarily political and asinine comment of the day goes to Martini Shark.

  • Martini Shark says:

    Yay, I won a prize!
    (It was a joke, you prig. Relax.)

  • Shawn Gordon says:

    NASA could be lying, I think this did happen a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.

  • bierce says:

    Um... how exactly do you have a hush-hush top secret launch of a Saturn V rocket?

  • chistes says:

    Looks like it's Shark Night 3D this weekend afterall.

  • StevieT says:

    please tell me that you spelled "general" wrong on purpiss.

  • Tyrone says:

    The only people who could think that this movie is real are the same ones who think the moon landings were fake. Will they be able to hold these contradicting thoughts in their heads at the same time? Yes. Don't underestimate kooks.

  • rainestorm says:

    I realize it was a joke. Like many misplaced (and not remotely clever) jokes it reveals much about the author's single-minded intention.

  • Martini Shark says:

    The article was about a film being declared to not be rooted in facts, and I referenced another well-known film given the same charge. Since I do not see the "politics" involved nor the single-minded nature, I'm curious. Do tell!

  • Delain says:

    Unlike Rainestorm who is trying to appear more intellectual than he is...I actually got the joke and found it amusing. Some people need to get over their own misplaced sense of self importance and lighten up.

  • James says:

    the funny thing is there was a Apollo 18 and the actually footage of the alien sights may have been fake in the movie but when the crew in real did go investigate something similar happened, and of course nasa is going to denie it. I just think the fact that this movie called out national security events pissed of nasa and whoever else, why else would they care about a movie if it was not real? they even have to make a statement on it I believe back when they launched the shit went down and nasa made up stories so that people can go on thinking there's never been any encounters or sighting but the fact is the government knows and they don't want you to know the truth.

  • Cornelius says:

    Ok... Everyone on this board is digging a little bit too deep into the theory of this movie being real or not. Rather it is fact or fiction, I highly doubt anyone on this board would know about it. It kills me how some people read a few articles, and learn a few big words. Then get on the internet and want to shoot everybodys opinion down like they have access to top secret information or some shit. LOOK! If you think its real then think its real.. If you dont think its real then shut the hell up about it and get a life. JUST ENJOY THE DAMN MOVIE!!!!! and If your so interested then go become an astronaut/work for NASA/ or build a damn spaceship yourself then fly to the moon.

  • Saba says:

    Mmmmn, ok .

  • lisa Schmale says:

    hmmm well what really happened to the missing astronauts then.. all went missing at the same time in different locations? that is the disturbing part, maybe we should talk to the wives left behind...

  • chris says:

    its a movie do u always belive tv

    • Cord says:

      The movie was real footage a former employee of NASA got their hands on it and leaked it. They say at the end all the "samples" went missing after being brought back to earth is because they were alive. And of course NASA is gonna deny that it's all fake.

  • Jierio says:

    But why did the movie have to confuse us in the end when it starts saying about the fake deaths . And the astournuts falling into oceans.

  • Joseph says:

    Okay first of all Cornelius your just a gullible fool who believes in what the government tells you and refused to think outside the box and have a fucking imagination and its idiots like you who dont see the truth and will fucking die

  • Timothy Ray McDaniel says:

    The last base on the moon was when the pyramids were power relay station recieveing power from the raidiant power transfer station and it qwit working so everbody showed up and trashed the place and stole the solid gold top !

  • Karen London says:

    OMG know escorts are known for faking it but I'm so definitely in two minds surely they could not have faked a moon landing?

  • bianca ella says:

    i have seen nasa private pictures on https://turbofilm.tv