In Metropia, even detective work is becoming obsolete. That makes the Ray Gunn trailer more interesting than a conventional preview of Brad Bird’s next animated film. Netflix has finally explained why its struggling private investigator matters in a city dominated by technology, celebrity culture and corruption. Behind a seemingly routine marital investigation lies a story about an old-fashioned detective trying to survive in a future that has little use for him.
Ray Gunn trailer turns a celebrity scandal into a detective mystery
Raymond Gunn, voiced by Sam Rockwell, used to work as a police officer. Now he operates as a private detective, although clients are increasingly difficult to find. Small investigative machines called pry bots have taken over much of his profession. With business almost nonexistent, Ray has reached the point of sleeping in his office.
His circumstances change when Arnold Dom, voiced by Bobby Cannavale, offers him a job. Dom is the fourth husband of Venus Nova, one of Metropia’s biggest stars, and wants to know whether his wife is being unfaithful. What initially sounds like a straightforward surveillance assignment becomes Ray’s entry into a far more complicated social circle.
That premise gives the film a useful contrast. Ray belongs to an increasingly irrelevant profession, yet his latest client comes from a world of extraordinary wealth and influence. As the investigation progresses, he must navigate both fashionable neighborhoods and the city’s criminal underworld. The question is not simply whether Venus is having an affair, but how a detective with so little power can operate among people who appear to have so much.
Why Metropia makes Brad Bird’s animated noir different
The city itself is central to that contrast. Metropia combines enormous skyscrapers, flying vehicles and a population where humans live alongside aliens. Its retro-futuristic appearance suggests technological progress, although the corruption beneath its impressive skyline tells another story.
That contradiction is particularly important for Brad Bird. The director of The Incredibles and Ratatouille has spent decades wanting to develop an animated feature aimed at grown-up storytelling. Here, he combines the atmosphere of classic detective cinema with an extravagant science-fiction environment. The creative foundation draws on Bogart-era noir, including the kind of intrigue associated with The Maltese Falcon, while the futuristic adventure recalls Buck Rogers.
Rather than treating animation primarily as a vehicle for family entertainment, Bird is using it to explore a morally complicated fictional society. The unusual combination also gives the project a different identity from more conventional crime thrillers. For comparison, Battle4Play recently examined how The Thomas Crown Affair uses revenge and personal relationships to reshape its central criminal investigation. Ray Gunn approaches familiar detective material from another direction, placing its investigator in a world where his entire profession is disappearing.
Ray Gunn trailer introduces the people who could complicate the case
Venus Nova, voiced by Scarlett Johansson, is more than the famous woman at the center of Arnold Dom’s suspicions. Her position in Metropia means Ray’s investigation brings him into contact with people from very different parts of the city. Meanwhile, his partner Eye-Ra, a cyclops alien voiced by Tom Waits, accompanies him through this increasingly complicated assignment.
Other characters introduce potential sources of friction. Michelle Rodriguez voices Roz Dexler, a Metropia police captain who previously had a relationship with Ray during his years on the force. One newly released image shows Roz pointing an accusatory finger at him during a tense encounter. Their shared history adds another personal complication to his investigation, although the precise circumstances of their reunion remain unclear.
Matt Berry also joins the cast as Slugsy, a mob boss pictured alongside one of his henchmen. Additional promotional images show Ray meeting a fedora-wearing contact outside a studio soundstage and spending time with Venus herself. Together, these glimpses establish a varied supporting cast without revealing how every character fits into the central mystery.
The A113 blaster hides a Pixar reference with a visual twist
One of the smaller details in the new promotional material should be familiar to longtime Pixar followers. The film features an A113 particle blaster with A113 engraved on its side. This is a reference to Brad Bird’s former classroom at CalArts, a number that has become a recurring Easter egg associated with Pixar filmmakers.
However, this particular reference has another distinctive feature. According to the film’s production notes, the A113 particle blaster is the only weapon in Ray Gunn with its own green energy. Consequently, the object is not merely another hidden number for animation enthusiasts to discover. Its unusual visual property also distinguishes it from the other weapons in the movie.
Netflix has accompanied these images with a new poster showing Ray flying toward the viewer on a battered jetpack above Metropia’s towering buildings. The promotional artwork emphasizes movement and danger, whereas September’s earlier teaser concentrated more heavily on atmosphere. For a closer examination of the newly released stills and poster, What’s on Netflix has published a detailed breakdown of the promotional material.
Ray Gunn trailer arrives before two different December release dates
Audiences will have two opportunities to watch Bird’s film in December. Ray Gunn opens in select theaters on December 4, 2026, including a limited number of 70mm screenings. Its worldwide Netflix release follows on December 18, 2026. The movie runs for 1 hour and 59 minutes and carries a PG rating.
This split between the two dates matters. The theatrical engagement offers a limited opportunity to experience Metropia on a cinema screen, while Netflix provides worldwide streaming availability two weeks later. Unlike a streaming-exclusive debut, this arrangement gives the film a brief theatrical window before reaching subscribers internationally.
Streaming release strategies can take different forms. For instance, Battle4Play has also covered the Disney+ arrival of Endgame Encore and its additional scenes, another example of how the timing and presentation of a film can shape the audience’s viewing options. Ray Gunn’s situation is different because its December theatrical screenings precede the movie’s first worldwide streaming release.
How critics have received Ray Gunn so far
There is already an encouraging indication of how the finished film has been received. Following its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival in October, Ray Gunn achieved Certified Fresh status on Rotten Tomatoes. Its score stood at 94% as of November 12, 2026. That figure reflects early critical reception rather than a guarantee of how every audience will respond.
Netflix’s official Tudum presentation of Brad Bird’s animated detective adventure further establishes the creative ambitions behind Metropia and its unusual protagonist. Yet the most compelling element remains the contrast between the city and its investigator: almost everything around Ray is advancing, while his methods belong to another age.
Ultimately, the Ray Gunn trailer suggests that the film’s appeal may depend less on futuristic gadgets than on the human detective surrounded by them. Brad Bird has built an elaborate science-fiction setting, but the story begins with a familiar problem: a desperate investigator accepts a job that could become much bigger than he expects. Whether that mixture of noir, celebrity intrigue and animation works for a wider audience will become clearer when the film reaches theaters on December 4 and Netflix on December 18.
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