It’s like a match made in heaven. Neil Blomkamp, director of District 9 and Gran Turismo is heading to Klendathu for his next movie. According to THR, the filmmaker is taking on Starship Troopers as his next movie. Columbia Pictures has tapped him to write and direct an adaptation of the Robert A. Heinlein book. Blomkamp will produce the movie alongside Terri Tatchell, his partner and wife, who he co-wrote District 9 and Chappie with.
The original novel was published in 1959 and told the story of a war between Earth and a host of bug-like aliens and focused on the military man Johnny Rico. The story had concepts of a military society and ideas like having to perform service to have voting rights. It has since been described as glorifying fascism. But it remains one of the most influential in sci-fi literature to this day. The classic 1997 Paul Verhoeven adaptation satirized the tone of the original novel to a massive degree. He was over the top in his depiction of the military and satirized the ideas of the novel.
Rico was played by Casper Van Diem in that movie, which spawned several sequels and an animated series. Starship Troopers is one of the best examples of a cult film ever. It was not well received originally but has found a following in later years. Blomkamp’s version will not be a remake of that film, but will go back to the source material for inspiration.
He most recently directed the excellent Gran Turismo for Sony Pictures. That film grossed over $122 million worldwide. He received an Academy Award nomination for his debut with District 9. He followed that up with Chappie and Elysium.
We’ll keep you updated on this story as it develops.
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Source: THR
