Sony Pictures is developing a new film adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 science fiction novel, Starship Troopers. Neill Blomkamp, director of District 9, Elysium, and Chappie, is attached to write and direct. This project, originating from Sony's Columbia Pictures, is a fresh adaptation of the source material and is not connected to Paul Verhoeven's 1997 satirical film of the same name.
The news of Blomkamp's involvement is intriguing, especially considering Sony's concurrent development of a Helldivers movie. Arrowhead Game Studios' Helldivers, a PlayStation Studios title, draws significant inspiration from Verhoeven's Starship Troopers, sharing similar themes of soldiers fighting alien bugs within a militaristic society. While both projects originate from Sony, the new Starship Troopers film aims for a more faithful adaptation of Heinlein's novel, a work whose themes differ considerably from Verhoeven's satirical interpretation.
Neither the Starship Troopers nor the Helldivers film currently has a release date. Blomkamp's most recent directorial effort was Sony's Gran Turismo, another adaptation of a PlayStation property.
