The Lost Bus chronicles the harrowing escape of a fearless driver and dedicated schoolteacher who saved 22 children during California’s deadliest wildfire. Director Paul Greengrass takes an intimate look at the frenzied response while pointing a damning finger at Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E); the utility’s failed power lines caused the 2018 Camp Fire, which burned over 150 thousand acres, killed 85 people and cost a staggering $16.5 billion dollars in damage. The film’s stunning visual effects and crisp editing insert the audience into the inferno’s hellish path with unsparing realism, while also addressing the personal travails of the protagonists as the world literally burns around them. Some may fault the narrative for treading melodramatic, but survival in a crisis situation doesn’t exist in a vacuum.
Matthew McConaughey stars as Kevin McKay, a divorced bus driver with a teenage son who returns to Northern California after the death of his estranged father. On Wednesday, November 7th, 2018, Kevin finishes his shift, dropping off elementary-aged kids before getting a verbal warning from his boss. Ruby Bishop (Ashlie Atkinson), the bus depot dispatcher, knows he needs more hours, but Kevin can’t neglect his administrative and mechanical duties with Bus 963. Kevin goes home exasperated to Sherry (Kay McCabe McConaughey), his disabled elderly mother, and the belligerent Shaun (Levi McConaughey).
Courage Under Fire
- Release Date
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October 3, 2025
- Runtime
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130 minutes
- Director
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Paul Greengrass
The next morning, strong gusty winds tear through the Sacramento Valley and knock down power lines, sparking a blaze that quickly spreads across the dry hillside. Cal Fire Chief Ray Martinez (Yul Vazquez) organizes a rapid response, but his engines can’t reach the fire as it engulfs them. They hastily retreat, and order air support once they realize that the fire is encroaching on nearby towns.
Meanwhile, at Ponderosa Elementary in the city of Paradise, smoke fills the skies. Phone lines are down. There have been no emergency alerts given, but the school decides to call parents and have the children picked up. Teacher Mary Ludwig (America Ferrera) waits with the kids whose parents couldn’t be reached, watching anxiously as emergency vehicles race by with residents fleeing. Kevin hears a desperate call on the radio from Ruby about children who need immediate transport. He ignores concerns about his own family’s safety and heads toward the school.
Matthew McConaughey as Kevin McKay
The Lost Bus establishes Kevin’s issues while the fire grows into an uncontrollable monster. Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy, United 93, Captain Phillips) isn’t interested in making a soulless disaster film; his work has always been character focused, using personal stories to drive distressing narratives. Kevin could have driven home and prioritized his loved ones without criticism. But he leaves their fates in the air to save strangers, performing admirably with a clear head in a terrifying scenario. Greengrass wants you to know and understand Kevin as a person, so his unselfish heroism means something in dramatic context.
Ferrera deserves equal acclaim as Mary, who never loses her cool and keeps the frightened children calm as they face the unthinkable. Greengrass shows people burning to death as they run for their lives. The children see the carnage explode around them as the bus fills with smoke and ash. Mary’s desperate efforts to keep them hydrated and away from the windows will have hearts in throats; she’s obviously scared, but has to remain a trusted authority figure for the students. Scenes of her holding and hugging them hit like a freight train — imagine if your child was on this bus. Mary reminds us of the extraordinary commitment teachers make to protect what’s most precious.
America Ferrera as Mary Ludwig
The Lost Bus has banner production values. The Camp Fire overtaking Paradise is both stunning and horrifying, and Greengrass blends in actual footage to properly illustrate the scope and magnitude of the disaster. Brown and muted hues become vivid orange as embers land on rooftops, making every home a matchstick. Confusion and calamity reign as people didn’t know where to run. Gridlocked roads and abandoned cars become fiery death traps, and scenes of the burnt leaping into streams as firefighters scream survival instructions are absolutely gripping. Then you have the despicable looters and armed assailants trying to capitalize on the mayhem; it’s infuriating and abhorrent behavior, but the film pulls no punches, depicting the best and worst of human nature.
Greengrass gets special style points for two distinct perspectives. Martinez and the command structure are juxtaposed with the flames gaining ground, and the camera swings down, up and over as the fire overtakes everything in its path. Greengrass captures its speed and ferocious intensity as the battle to fight the fire is tragically lost, leaving valiant citizens like Kevin and Mary to make life-or-death decisions in a truly nightmarish climax. The Lost Bus needs to be seen on the best screen and sound system possible. This isn’t a film to watch on a mobile device.
The Lost Bus is a production of Apple Studios, Blumhouse Productions and Comet Pictures. It premieres October 3rd exclusively on Apple TV+.