One Battle After Another Trailer Shows A Messy DiCaprio Trying To Save His Daughter

After shaking up Hollywood with Licorice Pizza, which earned three Oscar nominations, Paul Thomas Anderson is back—and this time, he’s trading nostalgia for revolution. One Battle After Another, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, looks like a politically charged epic filled with vendettas, personal quests, and emotional warfare.

Anderson has one aim in mind- bringing his characters closer to the audience, for which he has a particular directing style. Thus, we get the One Battle After Another trailer that is set against a political backdrop with complications of fractured relationships. 

With pulse-pounding action and raw emotional depth portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio, Oscar winner for the film The Revenant (2015), we are ready to see the story of endurance while on a quest. 

Plot of One Battle After Another

Based on Thomas Pynchon’s 199 novel Vineland, One Battle After Another is set in California during political unrest. The official synopsis of the film narrates that 16 years after an enemy resurfaces, a group of ex-revolutionaries reunite to find the daughter of one of them.

Bob Ferguson (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) is a burned-out revolutionary on the run in search of his missing daughter. He returns to action with the help of other fellow ex-revolutionaries, who seem to be still in form, to fight the enemy back. 

DiCaprio does not shy away in the trailer, saying that he is a drug and alcohol liver while talking on the phone. He is even seen threatening someone with curse words that he will hunt him down.

He is even seen asking for help from Del Toro when he pleads, “I need you, brother. Sensei, Sensei, Sensei, please.” De Toro replies, “Courage, Bob. Courage”. 

Watch the trailer here:

What does One Battle After Another trailer show?

The trailer seems to be a vendetta against an old enemy that reappears out of nowhere, and the kidnapping of Bob’s daughter might be connected. An intriguing thing to note here is a reunion with his crewmates, who are still standing there for him after several years.

How they would be able to help him, and whether there are any inside stories of each of their own wrapped under political undertones that mingle with the revenge of a long-absent enemy, will be an exciting watch.

Why the enemy is back after so many years will be fascinating to know. It is known to be “Anderson’s version of an epic chase movie” with dark comedy and drama, as per World of Reel. 

Director’s vision for the film

There Will be Blood (2007) director, Paul Thomas Anderson, is making One Battle After Another with a budget of more than $130 million, per The Hollywood Reporter. His films are known for bold visual style and bigger-than-life characters, and this is what we can anticipate after watching the trailer of the film.

There is something special about him that earned him seven Oscar nominations for even films. What is that? The actors. He uncovers the real reason himself,

“The only thing I ever really look at in movies is the actors.” [Source]

Therefore, he is an actor’s director who loves to cater to the needs of the actor’s role rather than his own directorial preferences. Even if there are technical or special interpretations, he prioritizes the actors first.

This could likely be the reason that his characters have outdone themselves, and The New York Times has accredited Daniel Day-Lewis’ performance in Phantom Thread (2017) as “great”. 

Another interesting aspect of his direction is the close-ups that show the parallel development of the character arcs, which is an important and defining stylistic feature of his directing style. 

The emotions and feelings of characters are unfolded in such close-ups that help in developing an emotional bond with the audience. It’s like reducing the distance between the character and the audience, building more trust between them. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by One Battle After Another (@onebattleafteranothermovie)

If you want to see another film with bigger-than-life characters, check out Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.

Leonardo DiCaprio’s thoughts on working with Paul

According to THR, Leonardo DiCaprio appeared at CinemaCon and talked about One Battle After Another. He said, 

“I’ve been wanting to work for Paul for over 20 years now…He’s one of the most unique talents of our time.” [Source]

The Revenant actor explained that the movie contains political and survival themes in a battle that intertwines with culture and the human psyche. The characters have to “improvise” for their own individual battles as well as the collective ones.

His working experience with other actors was “unique” as the collaborative process remained memorable. 

Teyana Taylor corroborated the fact that her character “loves very hard”. She joked and laughed while talking about her role, as her character has a lot going on in the film. 

When is One Battle After Another releasing?

Warner Bros. delayed the film’s release by one month, but now, the film is slated for a theatrical release on September 26, 2025. 

Genre: Crime, dark comedy, drama, thriller  

Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Regina Hall, Sean Penn, Alana Haim, Teyana Taylor, Chase Infiniti

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson

Writers: Paul Thomas Anderson

Producers: Paul Thomas Anderson, Adam Somner, Sara Murphy

Release date: September 26, 2025

Movie runtime: 2 hours 50 minutes 

Can’t wait to see how this unfolds—are you in? Let us know in the comments below.