Filmmaker James Grey has revealed that the released version of his 2019 sci-fi drama Ad Astra was not the film he originally intended to make, claiming 20th Century Fox took creative control away from him during production.

Speaking at the Cannes Film Festival while promoting his latest movie Paper Tiger, Grey said the Brad Pitt-led film underwent major changes following studio interference and the Disney acquisition of Fox.

“I control everything completely on this [‘Paper Tiger’] and, actually, I didn’t on ‘Ad Astra.’ That film was taken away from me. That’s not my cut of the movie,” Grey said.

The director explained that disagreements with the studio and corporate changes affected the final version of the film. “You get into discussions and debates, there’s a studio, then the studio [20th Century Fox] got sold to Disney. You get caught in that stuff. The movie was $80 million, ‘Paper Tiger’ was $15 million.”

Grey also criticised the decision-making process behind the film’s release, saying: “I like to work on that scale because I don’t think it’s productive for people to just change your movie around and you get the blame anyway.”

According to the director, his preferred version of Ad Astra would have been significantly different from what audiences saw in theatres.

“It would have been a very different movie,” he said, adding, “It would be 12 minutes shorter. I’m the only director who makes a shorter director’s cut. I hope someday I’ll do it.”