Titan A.E.
2000 US science fiction film
Titan A.E. is a 2000 American animated post-apocalyptic science fiction action film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman, and starring Matt Damon, Bill Pullman, John Leguizamo, Nathan Lane, Janeane Garofalo, and Drew Barrymore. Its title refers to the spacecraft central to the plot with A.E. meaning "After Earth". The animation of the film combines traditional hand-drawn created animation with the extensive use of computer-generated imagery.
The film tells the story of a young man named Cale Tucker who receives a mission to save humanity and protect the giant spaceship Titan that can create a new planet, after a hostile alien species have destroyed the planet Earth. Along the way, he joins up with a ship's crew and their captain, who help him race against time and find the ship, before the aliens can destroy it.
Theatrically released on June 16, 2000, by 20th Century Fox in the United States as the third and final project produced by Fox Animation Studios, Titan A.E. received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for its visuals and animation but criticism for its characters and plot. The film was also a box office disappointment, grossing $36.8 million against a budget of $75–90 million. It has since become a cult classic.
Plot
In 3028 A.D. (The 31st century), a groundbreaking scientific project known as "The Titan Project" incurs the wrath of the Drej, a hostile race of aliens made of pure energy, who fear that it will allow humans to challenge them. Determined to wipe out humanity due to the potential of the project, the Drej (who the Drej Queen orders to kill all humans) initiate a massive attack on Earth, forcing the human race to evacuate the planet.
“Titan A.E.” enters the record as 2000 US science fiction film. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Titan, science and fiction can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Titan A.E.” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Titan, science and fiction provides the most credible route into that argument.
Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 14, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q59781. VIAF identifies the subject as 182858506. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2000.
Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.
- Identifying works and editions
- Tracing reception history
- Finding collection records
The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Titan A.E.”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Titan A.E. primary sources, Titan A.E. archive and Titan research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Titan A.E.”?
- Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
- How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Titan A.E.” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.