Australian filmmaker George Miller has had quite an exciting career over his fifty-plus years in the industry. He has established himself as having one of the most unique and influential voices in cinema, practically creating an entire genre with the non-stop post-apocalyptic action of the Mad Max trilogy. He then took a break from the gritty wasteland to go on a family-friendly sabbatical with Babe: Pig in the City and the two Happy Feet films. Miller eventually returned to the world of Mad Max with Mad Max: Fury Road, considered by both critics and fans to be not only the best film in the series but also one of the best action films ever made.

Though he is still invested in the Mad Max universe with an announced continuation to Fury Road as well as a prequel following Imperator Furiosa, until those much-anticipated projects hit the screen, Miller's latest film is his first original concept since Happy Feet. Three Thousand Years of Longing is the writer/director's passion project that Miller has reportedly been wanting to make for the last twenty years. With the mysterious fantasy drama finally being released after premiering at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival, here is every detail we have so far on Three Thousand Years of Longing.

Editor’s Note: This piece was last updated on August 27 to add the updated Release Date and Critical Reception.

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Watch the Three Thousand Years of Longing Trailer

We got our first good glimpse of The Thousand Years of Longing in May 2022 with the full-length trailer introducing the two main characters and giving something of an idea of what the story will be. The teaser introduces Alithea, a lonely English woman who finds a mysterious yet beautiful vial whilst traveling out of the country to Istanbul. When she brings the vial to her hotel room and starts to clean it, a magical being called a Djinn (more commonly known as a genie) bursts out of it. In typical genie fashion, the Djinn tells Alithea that he will grant her three wishes. This is all new for Alithea, and she has plenty of questions as well as doubts, as the trailer continues and ends with a sizzle reel of footage mainly consisting of what appear to be flashbacks of the djinn's past and his previous masters. Since then, two more promotional clips for the movie have been released, the first titled “Wish We Never Met” and the second providing some behind-the-scenes info about the movie.

When and Where Is Three Thousand Years of Longing Releasing?

After having premiered at Cannes, Three Thousand Years of Longing was finally released in US theaters on August 26, 2022, with a runtime of 108 minutes. The movie's original release date was August 31 but it was moved up, though it will still be releasing in Canada on that date (for more international release dates, see the table below). You won't be able to watch it on your couch yet, however, as the trailer makes it explicitly clear that the anticipated project will only be available in theaters for the time being.

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How Is the Critical Reception to Three Thousand Years of Longing?

Critics have given Three Thousand Years of Longing a rather positive reception so far. Reportedly after it premiered at Cannes, the movie received an impressive six-minute-long standing ovation. Check out this excerpt from Collider's review of Three Thousand Years of Longing, written by Ross Bonaime.

...like with the majority of Miller’s work, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the ambition and beauty of this world that is being crafted, a testament to Miller’s brilliance as one of film’s greatest storytellers working today. Miller’s modern fairly tale is full of beauty, love, and care, even if the film often focuses on the grand instead of the modest moments.

What Is Three Thousand Years of Longing About?

Even though the trailer is more focused on showcasing the film's surreal visuals rather than spoiling every detail of the plot (like most trailers unfortunately do), it does at least introduce the set-up of the plot pretty simply. Based on the short story by A.S. Byatt titled The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye, the main plot centers around Alithea, a proud, logical English scholar. Though she used to be married, Alithea now lives a pretty lonely life, with the most excitement she gets coming from when she goes to attend a business conference in Istanbul. It's there that she finds a vial that she becomes instantly drawn to.

A quick trip back to her hotel room and a light rub of the vial later, and she finds out that a genie lives in that very same bottle, but when she's told that she gets three wishes, Alithea isn't as keen on the prospect as you might think. Instead, she's a bit inquisitive and concerned, wanting to know how this whole "wish-making" process works and the potential dangers this could wreak on her life given how so many of these stories wind up being "cautionary tales". The Djinn then tries to alleviate this hesitation by showing her visions of his past and what his awesome powers can do to change her life before she finally decides to make a wish.

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Who Made Three Thousand Years of Longing?

As mentioned before, Three Thousand Years of Longing is the brainchild of George Miller, who serves as the movie's writer, director, and producer. Joining him in the co-writing chair is Augusta Gore, and Miller is also co-producing with Victor Hadida (Resident Evil), Dean Hood (Preacher), Craig McMahon (Black Site), and Doug Mitchell (Mad Max: Fury Road). In addition to Mitchell, Miller has re-teamed with many members of the Fury Road crew, including composer Junkie XL, editor Margaret Sixel, and cinematographer John Seale, who has once again come out of retirement after breaking out the lenses again for the last Max Max film.

Who Is in the Cast of Three Thousand Years of Longing?

Three Thousand Years of Longing features Tilda Swinton in the lead role of Alithea, the scholar who discovers the genie. The Academy Award-winning actress has been consistently praised for her transformative performances, ranging from crowd-pleasing blockbusters like Doctor Strange and smaller-scale projects like Snowpiercer.

Joining her as the co-lead is Idris Elba as the Djinn, who despite being nameless in his credit as of now, will undoubtedly be an absolutely vital character in the plot. Like Swinton, Elba has a tremendous amount of range in the diverse array of roles he's portrayed over the years, whether it be an inspiring military leader in Pacific Rim or an abusive warlord in Beasts of No Nation.

Other cast members appearing in the film include Aamito Lagum as the Queen of Sheba, Burcu Gölgedar as Zefir, Matteo Bocelli as Prince Mustafa, Kaan Guldur as Murad IV, Jack Braddy as Ibrahim, Hugo Vella as young Ibrahim, Pia Thunderbolt as Ezgi, Anna Adams as Sugar Lamp, David Collins as Jocular Storyteller, and Angie Tricker as the narrator.