STOCKTON, Calif. — From the fields to space and now to the silver screen, a new movie chronicling the life of Stockton astronaut José Hernández is set for a September release date.
In an announcement Tuesday, Amazon Prime Video said that its new film, "A Million Miles Away" will be available on the streaming platform starting Sept. 15. It will also be available in select theaters on Sept. 8.
The movie, directed by Alejandra Márquez Abella, is based on the true story from Hernández's autobiography, "Reaching for the Stars: The Inspiring Story of a Migrant Farmworker Turned Astronaut."
Hernández will be played by Michael Peña. The film's costars include Rosa Salazar, Bobby Soto, Sarayu Blue, Veronica Falcón, Julio César Cedillo, Garret Dillahunt and Eric Johnson.
Hernández, who celebrated his 61st birthday in early August, was born in French Camp but calls Stockton home. As a kid, he worked in fields with his family, eventually graduating from Franklin High School, the University of the Pacific and UC Santa Barbara.
After years of work at the Lawerence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Hernández joined NASA's Johnson Space Center in 2001. In 2009 Hernández joined six other astronauts on the Space Shuttle Discovery for a 15-day trip to the International Space Station.
Hernández left NASA in 2011 and now leads the Stockton-based nonprofit, "Reaching for the Stars Foundation" which aims to inspire youth to find passion in science, technology, engineering and math.
The film's trailer on YouTube has been viewed at least 1.1 million times since being released Tuesday.
Watch more from ABC10: New school named after Stockton astronaut Jose Hernandez
