For awhile there Steven Spielberg didn't seem to have any idea where to go next. He had finished Lincoln and had backed out of directing Robopocalypse, and then it took awhile for him to decide what to do. But boy has that changed. Over the last few months he's added one potential project after another, and now he's another which will take him back to the realm of sci-fi for the first time in quite awhile.
Deadline reports that Steven Spielberg will direct an adaptation of Ernest Cline's video game-based novel, Ready Player One. Zak Penn (X-Men: The Last Stand) will adapt Cline's story which is chock full of classic video game references, which could make gaining their rights a major hurdle. It worked for Pixels and Wreck-It Ralph, right? Here's the synopsis:
In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines—puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them.
But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.
This will apparently be Spielberg's next film after he completes The BFG, which he'll start on after he finishes up with the Tom Hanks-led Cold War drama, Bridge of Spies. He's also got the PTSD drama Thank You for Your Service, war photographer film It's What I Do starring Jennifer Lawrence, and possibly even Indiana Jones 5 with Chris Pratt.
