Back in 2011, it was announced that director Neill Blomkamp would be following up his feature film debut, ‘District 9’, with another sci-fi tale called ‘Elysium’. Featuring A-List names like Matt Damon, Sharlto Copley, and Jodi Foster, the movie had been surrounded by much secrecy all throughout it’s production, but two months ago, the first trailer was released and we learned a bit about what to expect.

Drawing on the concept of an extreme economic hierarchy in the future, the story follows a man named Max who makes it his mission to make the citizens of an utterly ruined Earth and the luxurious paradise known as Elysium more equal so that everyone could experience the necessities of life that some are enjoying more than others.

While the trailer has been garnering some attention and the crowds who were lucky enough to get a sneak peek have been raving about what they saw, the rest of us are left to wonder a bit longer about this intriguing story. However, Sony has released a set of new stills for all to see to tide us over until the film premieres later this summer. You can check them out in the gallery below courtesy of Coming Soon and Collider:

While the shirtless picture of Damon may do something for some of our readers out there, it doesn’t exactly have the same effect on me. But the advanced weaponry that the actor is using does catch my eye. Considering Blomkamp’s previous experience as a 3D animator and visual FX specialist, I wouldn’t be surprised to see more unique tech throughout the film and I look forward to seeing what he brings to the table this time around.

What do you think of these new pictures from ‘Elysium’? Are you excited for Neill Blomkamp’s next science fiction story? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

‘Elysium’ starring Matt Damon, Jodi Foster, Wagner Moura, Sharlto Copley, William Fichtner, and Diego Luna open on August 9, 2013.