Good Fortune (film)

Good Fortune is a 2025 American comedy film and the feature directorial debut of Aziz Ansari, who also wrote the script and appears in the cast. The ensemble includes Seth Rogen, Keke Palmer, Sandra Oh, and Keanu Reeves. The story centers on Gabriel (Reeves), a low-ranking guardian angel. After a failed attempt to show a struggling man named Arj (Ansari) that wealth isn't a cure-all—by swapping Arj’s life with that of his rich boss, Jeff (Rogen)—Gabriel loses his wings. Meanwhile, the angelic work he had been doing starts to fall apart.

The project came together after Ansari’s original directorial debut, *Being Mortal*, was suspended at Searchlight Pictures in 2022. He then decided to make a comedy for theatrical release, pointing to the success of *Barbie* (2023) as evidence that such films could still thrive. Rogen, a longtime friend of Ansari’s, inspired several elements of the movie and joined the cast shortly after *Being Mortal* was shelved.

Principal photography was originally scheduled for May 2023, but production shut down mid-month due to the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Filming eventually began in late January 2024 in Los Angeles, at which point Palmer was added to the cast. Most of the shoot wrapped before April 2024, though some scenes were delayed after Reeves suffered an injury two weeks into filming and needed time to recover.

*Good Fortune* premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 6, 2025, and Lionsgate released it in the United States on October 17, 2025. Critics generally gave it favorable reviews, and it earned $26 million at the box office against a $30 million budget.

**Plot**

Gabriel is a low-ranking guardian angel whose usual job is preventing people from crashing while texting and driving. He longs to save lost souls, a task reserved for another angel named Azrael, who is among the few permitted to “Guide a soul.” One day, Gabriel saves Arj, an aspiring documentarian who works odd jobs and part-time at a hardware store, living out of his car. Curious, Gabriel observes him for a few days.

Arj starts dating his coworker Elena, who is trying to unionize the store. While doing tasks for hire, he meets Jeff, a wealthy tech investor, who hires him as an assistant. Jeff recommends a supposedly affordable restaurant for Arj to take Elena to, but it turns out to be very expensive, so Arj pays with Jeff’