Zathura: A Space Adventure

"Adventure is waiting."

2005 1h 41m EN

😐

6.5

MID

★6.5TMDB · 3,727

Science FictionAdventureFamily

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After their father is called into work, two young boys, Walter and Danny, are left in the care of their teenage sister, Lisa, and told they must stay inside. Walter and Danny, who anticipate a boring day, are shocked when they begin playing Zathura, a space-themed board game, which they realize has mystical powers when their house is shot into space. With the help of an astronaut, the boys attempt to return home.

“Adventure is waiting.”

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Cast

Josh Hutcherson
Walter Budwing
Jonah Bobo
Danny Budwing
Dax Shepard
Astronaut
Kristen Stewart
Lisa Budwing
Tim Robbins
Dad (Mr. Budwing)
Frank Oz
Robot (voice)
John Alexander
Robot
Derek Mears
Lead Zorgon

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jon Favreau
Writers: David Koepp, John Kamps, Ray Harvie
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $65M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 21 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jon Favreau, shot by Guillermo Navarro. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by John Debney. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Dan Lebental shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Josh Hutcherson and Jonah Bobo and Dax Shepard carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Adventure is waiting.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0406375 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jon Favreau directs. Guillermo Navarro behind the camera. John Debney scores. Dan Lebental cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $65M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Released 21 years ago.
3Directed by Jon Favreau, shot by Guillermo Navarro. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by John Debney. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Dan Lebental shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Josh Hutcherson and Jonah Bobo and Dax Shepard carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Adventure is waiting.".
8IMDB entry: tt0406375 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 31 themes, including "fire", "based on novel or book", "killer robot", "house".

The technical file

Cinematography: Guillermo Navarro
Original score: John Debney
Editing: Dan Lebental
Production design: J. Michael Riva
Costume design: Laura Jean Shannon
Makeup / hair: Melanie Hughes
VFX supervisor: Joe Bauer
Sound: Stephen Hunter Flick
Stunt coordinator: Thomas Robinson Harper
Runtime: 101 min · 1h 41m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $65,000,000
Box office: $65,079,104
Return: 100% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)

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Jon Favreau

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What people are saying

ryan jhonson2020-07-04
★ 8/10
good film one for the family deffo thumbs up👍👍👍!!!
CinemaSerf2026-08-15
★ 7/10
Yeah, I know - it's just "Jumanji" (1985) set in space, but it's still quite an enjoyable outing for Josh Hutcherson and Jonah Bobo. "Danny", the latter who definitely won out on the name stakes, is the younger brother who just wants to hang out with his cooler older sibling "Walter" when their dad (Tim Robbins) is called to work - but he isn't interested. After an altercation with a baseball, "Danny" goes exploring their rickety old house and discovers a game called "Zathura" which he starts playing by himself! That's mistake number one - but at least it gets "Walter" to pay attention as their house detaches itself from suburbia and heads into outer space - and a perilous one at that. There are robots, "Zorgons", an helpful astronaut (Dax Shepard) oh, and yes - there's a sister too - "Lisa" (Kristen Stewart) who is much older than her brothers and who has even less interest in their games. Each turn of the key delivers a card and each card could potentially spell life and death. Will they make it all the way round? No, jeopardy isn't any higher on Jon Favreau's list than it was in the original Van Allsburg book, but along the way we have some fun trashing their house, fighting off monstrous aliens and someone realised early on that Stewart does some of her best acting when cryogenically frozen to her toothbrush. The visual effects work well and of course the messages of familial loyalty, inter-dependence and resilience are writ large as just about everyone realises they can only win if they work together. I enjoyed this.