A
anon_xdc8rmuek44eq
Guest
I think I may have recommended this book to some on this board a few years ago when it was released - it is the perfect blend of 80's pop culture/cult nostalgia and the present/future world of virtual gaming. It's roots are grounded in Sci-Fi though and I've heard lots of different directors on studio 'wish lists' but I never thought they would get, arguably, the greatest sci-fi director of our time to adapt this wonderful book. I am still curious as to how they are going to pull off the dozens and dozens of copyrighted films/characters/items that appear in the book, but I guess as long as the spirit is there, it should be pretty amazing. Here's the plot of the book and a bit about some of the rights issues it could face:
First the story, then the possible rights issues and cinematic technology that are involved in bringing the story to the big screen: The book takes place in 2044 and follows the story of a virtual-reality game creator who offers up his entire company to the best player who can find an Easter egg in one of his many virtual worlds via a game called OASIS[/I]. A teenager named Wade Watts decides to take it on after millions have failed over many years. The key to winning the game is a plethora of pop culture clues from the 1980s. Whomever figures it out and wins the game - without having their avatars killed in the process - takes over the entire OASIS[/I] empire.
Ready Player One[/I] was published by Random House Crown in 2011, however the studio acquired the rights to the film in 2010 for producers Donald De Line and Dan Farah, who brought the project into the studio. They will produce with Kristie Macosko Krieger. Warner Bros plunked down a high-six-figure deal, besting other suitors at the time. The book has become a phenomenon, published in 40 countries; it was on The New York Times[/I]' best seller's list and was chosen best-of by numerous news and pop cultures websites around the globe. Silverman, who was President of Production at the time, bought the project for the studio. It is being overseen by SVP Production Jesse Ehrman and production executive Racheline Benveniste.
Zak Penn (X-Men: The Last Stand[/I], The Avengers[/I]) wrote the latest script after taking over the duties from Cline and Eric Eason (A Better Life[/I]). Interestingly, Penn and Cline worked together on the video game documentary Atari: Game Over[/I]and have said to be collaborating on the Ready Player One[/I]script extremely well for some time.
Now, the rights issue: The book is loaded with references of popular culture rich in 1980s video game icons. How will the studio handle that? "I think what we have to do is drill down to the best version of the movie and then see who wants to be a part of what will surely be a great film," Silverman told Deadline. "What we found with The Lego Movie[/I] is that when we went and talked to those having the rights, people got excited about being involved." For that film, Warners already owned Batman but did not have rights to Star Wars[/I]. They were able to secure that for an animated version, however. And Lego already had a licensing deal with Star Wars[/I].
Now the possible technology that could be used: How will they bring the virtual world to life? "At Warners, we always have our eye on all the groundbreaking visual effects and technology available worldwide, and we feel very confidant with any new ground that Steven would want to tackle," said Silverman. "He's a master filmmaker, so we feel very comfortable with him. The story is the main thing, and whatever works best for audience enjoyment is what we'll do."
First the story, then the possible rights issues and cinematic technology that are involved in bringing the story to the big screen: The book takes place in 2044 and follows the story of a virtual-reality game creator who offers up his entire company to the best player who can find an Easter egg in one of his many virtual worlds via a game called OASIS[/I]. A teenager named Wade Watts decides to take it on after millions have failed over many years. The key to winning the game is a plethora of pop culture clues from the 1980s. Whomever figures it out and wins the game - without having their avatars killed in the process - takes over the entire OASIS[/I] empire.
Now, the rights issue: The book is loaded with references of popular culture rich in 1980s video game icons. How will the studio handle that? "I think what we have to do is drill down to the best version of the movie and then see who wants to be a part of what will surely be a great film," Silverman told Deadline. "What we found with The Lego Movie[/I] is that when we went and talked to those having the rights, people got excited about being involved." For that film, Warners already owned Batman but did not have rights to Star Wars[/I]. They were able to secure that for an animated version, however. And Lego already had a licensing deal with Star Wars[/I].
Now the possible technology that could be used: How will they bring the virtual world to life? "At Warners, we always have our eye on all the groundbreaking visual effects and technology available worldwide, and we feel very confidant with any new ground that Steven would want to tackle," said Silverman. "He's a master filmmaker, so we feel very comfortable with him. The story is the main thing, and whatever works best for audience enjoyment is what we'll do."
