The film centers on a historic conference that took place from October 30–31, 1980 at the Don CeSar Hotel in St. Petersburg, Florida, also known as the "Pink Palace" conference. The event took place just days before the 1980 United States presidential election on November 4, 1980, when Democratic President Jimmy Carter lost his re-election to Ronald Reagan. At the conference, a group of scientists and environmentalists gather to debate evidence of climate change, with the conference to conclude in a joint statement to Congress about their findings and what preventative measures should be taken.
In 1980, in the final months of the Jimmy Carter presidency, a group of scientists, activists and policymakers gather in Florida for a conference on the effects of carbon dioxide emissions on the climate with a seemingly simple mandate: writing a statement for Congress on measures to be taken against the issue.
In January 2026, it was announced that Sony Pictures Classics would co-finance and distribute Tom McCarthy's next directorial effort – which he also co-adapted with Thomas Bidegain and Noé Debré from the 2019 book Losing Earth. In an interview with McCarthy at the New York Film Festival, it was revealed that the script was crafted from the original transcript from the conference, that Nathaniel Rich was able to procure from the National Archives. The actors perform the transcript in large parts verbatim, with McCarthy likening the text as Shakesperian in nature.
Filming was set to commence in late February 2026. That same month, the film's title was reported to be The Statement, with Paul Rudd, Paul Giamatti, and Peter Sarsgaard rumored to star. In February 2026, the cast was revealed to consist of Rudd, Giamatti, Evan Peters, Tatiana Maslany, John Turturro, Amy Ryan, and Jason Clarke. Production on the film was delayed to March. In April 2026, the rest of the cast was announced.