Arrival: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner discuss new film

With the arrival of Arrival‘s full-length trailer (which you can see below), there are now even more fascinating questions raised about this sci-fi thriller from director Denis Villeneuve. For starters, have you ever seen a spaceship that looks like this one? Why are they bringing a little innocent birdie onto the ship? Why do the aliens look part smoke monster and part octopus? Why is Amy Adams the only one speaking any sort of sense here?

The stars of the movies are not about to give up its secrets: “It’s tricky,” says Jeremy Renner. “There are things to do with the plot I can’t talk about yet — let’s say there’s an interesting issue….and that’s where the challenge lies.” Adams is also careful not to reveal too much, but she will allow that while her character is an expert linguist, the film is not just about language. “It’s about the way we communicate with each other, the relationships that we have, the way we move through the world and the choices that we make,” she says.

Villeneuve, who knows a thing or seven about a directing an incredibly suspenseful movie (Sicario, Prisoners), keeps the atmosphere on his sets anything but. “It was really relaxed. Almost too relaxed — like, are we making a movie? It was unlike any set I’ve been on before,” says Renner. “It has this sort of eerie calmness to it that was really great. Denis has this great sense of humor and he’s this gentle, thoughtful man. I didn’t realize till after I saw [the movie] just how visual he is. After watching it for the first time I walked out thinking, ‘That’s a goddamn director.'” Renner laughs. “It’s heart-wrenching and beautiful and you’ll walk out weeping. It was his direction that made it that way.”

Arrival will be released in theaters on Nov. 11.

To continue reading more from EW’s Fall Movie Preview, pick up the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, on newsstands now, or buy it here – and subscribe now for more exclusive interviews and photos, only in EW.