Spielberg’s “Disclosure Day” took 42 drafts to land

42 drafts – David Koepp said he needed 42 draft attempts to deliver the screenplay for Steven Spielberg’s upcoming sci-fi thriller “Disclosure Day,” balancing breakneck action pacing with philosophical themes—religion, agnosticism, and how global society absorbs an “absol

A script can look effortless on screen. For David Koepp and Steven Spielberg, that effortless look came only after a long stretch of revision.

Koepp. a longtime screenwriter behind films including “Jurassic Park. ” “Mission: Impossible. ” and “Spider-Man. ” said that his upcoming sci-fi thriller “Disclosure Day”—directed by Spielberg—took 42 draft attempts before Spielberg was ready to shoot. The delay, Koepp said, wasn’t about a missing vision. It was about calibration: getting the story exactly right.

“Disclosure Day” arrives as Spielberg is also pushing against Hollywood’s obsession with “branded IP. ” Koepp said. by leaning into an original. high-concept idea. In that setup. the work became less about whether the movie was good enough and more about whether it reached a higher bar of creative satisfaction—something Koepp linked to the chemistry between himself and the director.

Those drafts weren’t simply incremental polish. Koepp described the back-and-forth as a balancing act between intense action-thriller pacing and weighty philosophical themes, including religion and agnosticism, as well as the question of how global society handles an “absolute, shattering truth.”

Forty-two drafts can sound like friction. but Koepp framed the number as part of how screenwriting works when a film is headed for production. In the studio system. a “draft” can mean anything from a full rewrite to adjustments that shift what a story is emphasizing—particularly in later stretches of a film.

The insistence on accuracy, Koepp suggested, extended beyond plot mechanics into narrative balance—how fast the film moved and how meaning landed when the story leaned into something larger than entertainment.

Koepp’s comments also land as a reminder that rewriting isn’t just busy work. In his view, finishing a flawed draft so it can be fixed matters more than holding onto a great idea that never makes it onto the page.

“Disclosure Day” stars Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor, and Colin Firth. It hits theaters on June 12, 2026.

David Koepp Steven Spielberg Disclosure Day 42 drafts Emily Blunt Josh O'Connor Colin Firth screenplay