See Unsee summary
Paul Thomas Anderson returns with his most ambitious film yet. One Battle After Another blends large-scale action with intimate storytelling, carried by a striking ensemble cast and a rising star who’s already making waves. With a budget of $130 million and early critical acclaim, the film is a frontrunner for awards season—and possibly Anderson’s long-awaited Oscar moment.
A bold new chapter for Paul Thomas Anderson
Known for intimate dramas and richly human stories, Paul Thomas Anderson has ventured into new territory with One Battle After Another. This is his most expensive film to date, with a reported $130 million budget and a scale we haven’t seen from him before. Car chases, bank robberies, and even explosions—he doesn’t hold back.
Yet, what’s impressive is that the film doesn’t feel like Anderson compromising his style. Behind the spectacle, there’s still the emotional weight and attention to character that has always defined his work. Much of the story revolves around political idealism, fading rebellion, and the cost of resistance. Anderson regulars will find familiar themes—but dressed this time in action-heavy sequences and high stakes.
The cast is stacked with heavyweights—Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Regina Hall, and Teyana Taylor—but what got cinema lovers truly talking was the discovery of a new face that refuses to go unnoticed: Chase Infiniti. To read Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton face off in 2026’s Apex trailer
The arrival of Chase Infiniti
At just 25, Chase Infiniti makes a violent, vibrant entrance into Hollywood with One Battle After Another. Her trailer moment—assault rifle in hand, tutu on, combat boots laced—is already iconic. She plays Willa, the daughter of ex-revolutionaries portrayed by DiCaprio and Taylor. It’s a role that demanded emotional nuance but also physical intensity, and Infiniti delivers both.
I’ll be honest: I hadn’t heard of her before the trailer. But the presence she brings—even for just a few seconds—made me curious. That rare combination of charisma and unpredictability. Seeing the full film only confirmed it: she’s got something special, something raw and magnetic.
Raised in Indianapolis, Infiniti trained in musical theater at Columbia College Chicago. Originally, she wanted to be on stage. That stage discipline probably explains why she picked up fight choreography and stunt work so quickly. Her leap into screen work happened with Apple TV+’s Presumed Innocent, where she shared scenes with Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Negga. Her chemistry test with Gyllenhaal, held over Zoom, marked her first direct contact with a major star.
From watching to starring
Director Anne Sewitsky, who worked with Infiniti on Presumed Innocent, played a big part in preparing her. She encouraged her to visit other sets, to watch experienced actors perform. It wasn’t just background observation—it was training. Infiniti took it all in. Watching talents like Bill Camp and Peter Sarsgaard on set gave her a quiet education in presence, rhythm, restraint.
Still, nothing could have fully prepared her for working with Anderson. Willa isn’t a simple role. She’s caught between generations, between violence and memory, between loyalty and self-expression. To land the part, Infiniti went through multiple audition rounds, including martial arts and combat training. The clincher, as Anderson tells it, wasn’t a tape or a reading—it was seeing her in a karate class. That moment sealed it. To read Ranking Shyamalan’s Hits: Which Film Defines His Legacy?
The actors she now shares the screen with were just as taken with her. Regina Hall, in particular, praised her adaptability and speed: “She’s a real one,” Hall said. “She learns fight scenes like she grew up on a stunt stage.”
The industry starts to pay attention
If One Battle After Another is her launch, Chase Infiniti’s next step confirms she’s more than a one-shot phenomenon. She’s set to star in The Testaments, the highly anticipated sequel series to The Handmaid’s Tale. Based on Margaret Atwood’s more recent novel, it will once again be led by The Handmaid’s Tale creator Bruce Miller.
In the series, she plays Agnes—a reinvented version of Hannah, the missing daughter of June. Miller has already compared finding her to the early days of Sydney Sweeney. That comparison isn’t thrown lightly. Like Sweeney, Infiniti seems to know how to keep control of a scene without overplaying. That’s rare.
Off-screen, she’s gaining attention too. Her mix of fire and elegance caught the eye of fashion houses—she’s been dressed by Louis Vuitton’s Nicolas Ghesquière for several premieres. But Infiniti doesn’t seem too distracted by the glitz. She knows what this stage of the career looks like: many auditions, and more rejections than roles. In her interviews, she’s clear-eyed about that.
Other recent projects reflect her range:
- A music video appearance in Tyler, the Creator’s “Darling, I” after he spotted her in the One Battle After Another trailer
- Short film collaboration with experimental director Ava Iranpour, still unreleased
- Ongoing stage workshops in Chicago for a planned one-woman show
And yes—that’s her real name. Chase Infiniti. Printed right there on her birth certificate. You don’t forget a name like that, and after this film, I doubt anyone in Hollywood will either.
