Pete Beck vs. Chris Kemp: The rocket rivalry you’ve got to see to believe

Enlarge / Chris Kemp is CEO of Astra. He has a colorful personality. (credit: Courtesy of HBO)

Early on in the new documentary film Wild Wild Space, Astra rocket company chief executive Chris Kemp offers this bit of snide commentary on his launch competitor, Rocket Lab: “I’m someone who wants to actually succeed from a business perspective, versus just make big toys.”

For better or worse—and it's better for viewers and ultimately worse for Kemp—he is the star of the documentary film now showing on the streaming network Max. The main narrative involves the race between Rocket Lab and Astra to develop, test, and fly small and commercially viable rockets. And what a compelling narrative it is, especially as the story unfolds toward its inexorable conclusion. Anyone who has paid a bit of attention to the space industry knows where this is headed: the ascent of Rocket Lab and failure of Astra. But it's a fun ride anyway.

The film is based directly on the book When the Heavens Went on Sale, by Ashlee Vance. He is the most prominent talking head in the movie, and he does a fine job contextualizing the story. But what really makes the movie sing is the narcissistic monologues by Kemp, the access to his company, and interviews with Rocket Lab founder Peter Beck, who seems mostly bemused at Kemp’s aspirations to challenge him. It all offers a rare, revealing, and intimate look into startup culture.