Scifi Movies' Next Savior Is Named Joby

Graeme McMillan — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 07:30:00 PST

It's official: Hollywood's next hot scifi screenwriter is Joby Harold. He's just been picked to write a pet project of today's hot scifi screenwriters - and he may be the next Zack Snyder, too.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Harold is in negotiations to write the script for Atlantis Rising, a comic book adaptation being produced by Star Trek, Fringe and Transformers writers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (The story deals with humanity being invaded by the undersea dwellers of Atlantis; "In all the classic versions of this kind of movie, the threat is always from the stars... The idea that it's somehow our cousins who went off in a different path of evolution who have been here, literally, underneath our oceans. ... That's fascinating, the idea of secrets right under your nose," according to Orci). The movie, to be directed by Underworld's Len Wiseman, is expected to be released in Summer 2011.

But that's not the only big name that Harold is circling; although his only credit to date is last year's surgery-terror Awake, he's also working on Warner Bros' adaptation of Frank Miller's futuristic samurai movie Ronin, also expected in 2011. Miller, Orci/Kurtzman... throw in JJ Abrams or Joss Whedon, and I think that's the full set, isn't it...?

Joby Harold circles 'Atlantis' adaptation [Hollywood Reporter]

Are You Ready For War With High-Tech Undersea Aliens?

Charlie Jane Anders — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 08:20:00 PDT

Writers Alan Kurtzman and Roberto Orci managed to transform the old Transformers franchise into a hit movie, and everyone's hoping they'll do the same for Star Trek. But will they be able to work similar magic with a graphic novel that almost nobody has read, that hasn't even finished publishing in comic-book form? They just signed on to adapt Atlantis Rising, a comic book about underwater aliens who want us to stop polluting the oceans. (But at least the aliens look like porn stars.)

Here's how comic book publisher Platinum Studios described Atlantis Rising back when they issued the first issue:

For thousands of years, the legendary continent of Atlantis has thrived unencumbered by those who live on Earth's surface. Now after decades of surface pollution, from oil spills to off-shore dumping, the Atlantean way of life has been threatened, bringing the two civilizations to the brink of all-out war.
"With the ongoing debate regarding global climate change, Atlantis Rising offers a mix of real-world issues, combined with suspense and action on an epic scale," says Platinum Studios Comics Publisher, Sean O'Reilly.

They offered the first issue of Atlantis for a quarter, but sadly I don't know anybody who bought it. To be fair, though, it got pretty good reviews. (Well, okay, I don't know that "Much of the story reads like an ... underdeveloped screenplay" is that positive.) In any case, it turns out the Atlanteans are actually aliens who crashed here thousands of years ago, and now they're pissed. And there's a reporter, Angelica Danielson, who's on the trail of a missing industrialist who may be tied into the reasons for the Atlanteans' annoyance. It's not much of a spoiler to say that the confrontation between the humans and aliens heats up in future issues of the miniseries.

This is the latest in a recent line of comics that got movie deals either before they published their first issue, or soon afterwards. Readers complain about comics that read like movie pitches, but the result seems to work for Hollywood. [Wired]

io9: atlantis rising

Scifi Movies' Next Savior Is Named Joby

Are You Ready For War With High-Tech Undersea Aliens?