DIRECTOR EXCLUSIVE - Power Pack

The kids-friendly Secret Headquarters leans more towards Sky High than Kick-Ass

BACK IN 2020, PROJECT POWER’S gritty take on the superhero genre captured the attention of Jerry Bruckheimer. The uber-producer consequently offered co-directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman Secret Headquarters, a fun, fantastical and kid-friendly superhero romp. In other words, it’s the complete antithesis of the duo’s previous dark endeavour.

“We always had it on our bucket list to make the kind of movie that we really loved as kids, like a Goonies, an ET, an Adventures In Babysitting or a Labyrinth… One of those movies that really tapped into our imaginations as kids,” Joost tells Red Alert. “With the original script by Chris Yost, who is a great comic book writer, we were just like ‘This idea is so great’. We pitched some changes to the script and Jerry was like, ‘Okay, when can you start?’”

It’s 2022, and the most famous superhero in the world, the Guard, has made the world a safer place. Secret Headquarters follows Charlie Kincaid (Walker Scobell), a regular teen who is slightly small for his age. He serves as the relief pitcher on his baseball team. And he wishes for more quality time with his workaholic father Jack (Owen Wilson). For his birthday, Charlie can’t wait to hang out with his father… then dad gets called away on business again. But an impromptu celebration changes Charlie’s life forever.