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“Expect an update about it in the next couple of months,” says an Akira producer, reviving interest in a project long been considered dead.

Given just how poorly Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love And Thunder was received in 2022, it wasn’t particularly surprising when talk of Taika Waititi helming several big franchises seemed to stall. News on his planned Star Wars film went quiet, as did any further chatter regarding his adaptation of Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo’s beloved Japanese anime (and manga) that has long been considered unfilmable, despite a host of filmmakers at Warner Bros making attempts to get it up and running.

Jordan Peele was said to be involved at one point; Taika Waititi was definitely attached; Justin Lin, Daniel Espinosa, Stephen Norrington, David Sanberg, Ruairi Robinson, Jaume Collet-Serra and Albert Hughes are other directors who at one point or another have been involved in a project which...

The most exciting aspect of Taika Waititi's long-gestating live-action Akira adaptation is that it will be nothing like the 1988 movie it's based on. Hollywood's Akira movie remains among the most infamous examples of a project stuck in development hell. Katsuhiro Otomo's seminal manga debuted in 1982, and the feature-length anime that followed six years later propelled Akira to iconic status across the world. Naturally, Akira became one of the very first Japanese anime and manga properties to catch the attention of western movie studios, and reports of adaptation plans first emerged in the 1990s.

Over the decades, various iterations of possible live-action Akira movie projects have come and gone, with directors such as Ruairí Robinson and Jaume Collet-Serra attached at different times. According to the most recent updates, Taika Waititi is currently in the frame to reawaken Akira from its slumber - but not any time soon. Updates have been sparse in the 2020s,...

The 1988 Akira anime film was released, and it soon became a cult classic and has been hailed as a pivotal film in the Japanese cyberpunk genre. The movie focuses on Kaneda, the leader of a bike gang who gets involved in a complex military matter due to his friend who can suddenly use telekinetic abilities.

The movie earned over $49 million despite being produced on a budget of $5.7 million. After garnering popularity from all over the world, it finally came under the watchful eyes of Warner Bros for a live-action remake; however, it has been more than two decades, and most fans have given up hope.

Warner Bros.’ Remake of Akira was Doomed from the Very Beginning Akira | Credits: Tms Entertainment

More than a decade after the release of Akira, Warner Bros. acquired the rights in order to create a live action remake of the movie. However, the project has been cursed from the very beginning.

"Don't be afraid. I'm not here to take you... You can help me. And I can help you." It's time to discover new worlds. Time to explore unique galaxies and strange planets. A Thousand Suns is the latest creation from a filmmaker known as "Macgregor", produced by a company called Blackmilk Studio. The sci-fi anthology series set in the distant future has launched online - all six episodes (to start) are available on YouTube for free. Macgregor says his team of filmmakers, including Ruairi Robinson & Tyson Wade Johnston, worked to craft "films that serve as a gateway to our hopes, dreams... and nightmares." We posted a trailer last week, and now the first round of films are out. This is similar to Neill Blomkamp's Oats Studios or the Love Death + Robots series on Netflix, featuring fresh ideas brought vividly to life in films that are under 10 minutes. So...

"In the vastness of space and time, many tales weave into one, under the light of a thousand suns." There's an exciting original sci-fi series about to launch next week. A Thousand Suns is the latest creation from a filmmaker known as "Macgregor", produced by a company called Blackmilk Studio. There's not much out yet about the plot or the different stories. There will be a total of six anthology episodes to watch: Episode 1 - Ice; Episode 2 - Red; Episode 3 - Exodus; Episode 4 - Deal; Episode 5 - Bug; & Episode 6 - Tomorrow Land. Macgregor says his team of filmmakers, including Ruairi Robinson & Tyson Wade Johnston, worked to craft "films that serve as a gateway to our hopes, dreams... and nightmares." This seems like a sleek live-action anthology series akin to Love Death + Robots that will tell various sci-fi stories. I'm really digging the footage in this teaser, and will be...

Albert Hughes reveals the struggles faced during the production of the live-action Akira movie, including the studio's fear and hesitation to make the film. When Warner Brothers offered him any project after the success of The Book of Eli, Hughes chose Akira, but felt that the studio wasn't truly ready to make it. Hughes emphasized the importance of staying true to the original source material and believed that the IP of Akira was more significant than any individual actor.

Albert Hughes has spoken about the live-action Akira movie's production struggles. The original 1988 Akira, based on the manga of the same name, follows the biker Kaneda trying to rescue his friend Tetsuo from being experimented on by the government in Tokyo several decades after a nuclear bomb was dropped on the city by the Japanese government. A live-action version of Akira has been in development since as early as the 1990s,...

Acclaimed writer and director Jordan Peele explains why he did not direct the live-action remake of the beloved Japanese animated classic Akira. Released in 1988, the dystopian futuristic science-fiction action movie is based on Katsuhiro Otomo's manga of the same name. Directed by Otomo, Akira fuses slick visuals, a cyberpunk aesthetic, and a riveting story with break-neck action to create one of the most lauded anime films of all time. Akira follows biker gang leader ShÅ.tarÅ. Kaneda, whose friend develops dangerous telekinetic abilities, creating chaos within the dense metropolis of Neo-Tokyo.

While on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via IndieWire), Peele shares why he ultimately did not direct the Akira live-action remake. The director explains that although he is passionate about the project, he admits he feels rejecting Warner Bros.' offer allowed him to create the original films he always wanted to make. Read what Peele says below:...

Following its anime debut in the 1980s, Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira has been one of the most iconic stories in Japanese media, and there have been many attempts to produce a live-action movie version. The original manga, also created by Otomo, was a success that won a Harvey Award in 1993 and four Eisner Awards, two in 2002 and two in 2018. The anime was lauded for its story and amazing, if sometimes grotesque, animation. Its success played a big part in anime finding a home in the United States as a medium to tell adult stories.

With Akira's success, naturally, there were attempts at adapting it in other forms. Akira creator Katsuhiro Otomo, for example, stated in 2019 that he was working with the anime studio Sunrise to create a new Akira anime based on the manga, which would undoubtedly have included content cut from the original movie. More notable, however, is...

I’ve got a solid little short sci-fi film here for you to watch called Corporate Monsters. The film comes from director Ruairi Robinson, which as you’ll see is heavily inspired by John Carpenter’s 1988 film They Live.

The story for the short follows a man named Rob (Kett Turton) who starts to severely suffer from depression after losing his job. He starts to become unstable and to help, his doctor gives him some pills to treat his condition. The pills are “not quite Fda approved yet,” and after taking them, “he begins seeing things: he sees people as horrendous monsters, creatures that control the world from the shadows and stay hidden by people’s own blindness and apathy.”

As you’ll see in the short, things escalate into craziness as Rob tries to get his girlfriend (Jenna Coleman) to take one of the pills so that she can see the monsters as well.

"They're everywhere! Don't you see." Dive back into the mind of sci-fi filmmaker Ruairi Robinson, who just released his latest short film online. Corporate Monster is the latest film by Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson, who we are big fans of here at Fs. Over the years we've featured his other sci-fi shorts including Blinky and The Leviathan. Inspired by the current state of the world, which Robinson rather aptly describes as "f*cked", Corporate Monster tells the story of a man who loses his job and "starts to believe that parasitic creatures are controlling the world." It's basically They Live remade by Neill Blomkamp, filtered through Robinson's mind. The short film stars Kett Turton and Jenna Coleman. This gets a bit too real half-way through, but that's the point. To reflect society, and make us think. Maybe there really are aliens out there? Thanks to Short of the Week for the tip on this.

Before you continue, there is more to this story than meets the eye. First though, Xyz Films and Ground Control Entertainment are partnering with SingularDTV to finance and produce New Frontiers, a sci-fi anthology consisting of five shorts films, which together will form one feature-length film. Futurism Studios will also serve as an executive producer on the project.

The anthology is created and to be directed by Ruairi Robinson (Last Days on Mars), Stephan Zlotescu, Zac&Mac and Tyson Johnston. Together with producer Scott Glassgold the team developed the world of New Frontiers w [Continued ...]...

It looks like Warner Bros.’ long-developing adaptation of the graphic novel Akira is heating back up, this time with an extremely buzzworthy director. Deadline reports that Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi is now in talks to take the helm of the Akira remake, which takes place in a rebuilt New Manhattan and revolves around the leader of a biker gang. The studio has been developing this project for a long time, with Ruairi Robinson originally attached to take the helm, followed by the Hughes Brothers with Harry Potter scribe Steve Kloves working on the screenplay. The Hughes Brothers departed, …...

With his highly-anticipated Thor: Ragnarok hitting theaters in November, director Taika Waititi has just landed his next high-profile project, Warner Bros.' Akira. The director has entered negotiations to take the helm of this manga adaptation, which has languished in development hell for several years, and has never been able to get off the ground yet. This long-gestating Akira movie last made headlines back in May, when Jordan Peele turned down the project, following the success of his hit movie Get Out.

Deadline broke the news today, also revealing that the studio has always planned to make two Akira movies, each of which would cover three books apiece in the 6-volume Akira graphic novel by Katsuhiro Otomo. The last we heard about this project was that Akira creator Katsuhiro Otomo has final approval over every aspect of the Akira movie, which may explain why it's taken so long to come to fruition.

It looks like the iconic manga Akira is revving back up, this time with Warner Bros. negotiating with Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi. Deadline Hollywood reports that Waititi is at the top of the list for the live action version of anime artist Katsuhiro Otomo’s 6-volume graphic novel. Leonardo DiCaprio is producing. The movie has been very high priority since Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures bought it for 7-figures from manga publisher Kodansha. Filmmakers intend to make 2 films, each covering 3 books in the series. Akira was first adapted as the classic anime in 1988.

The live-action movie has almost been made several times. Originally Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby and Gary Whitta wrote a script which originally had Ruairi Robinson attached to direct. It got closest to a start date several years ago, with Dane DeHaan and Michael Pitt both competing for the lead role of Tetsuo, and were going to star alongside Garrett Hedlund,...

It’s been a long time since we’ve heard anything regarding Warner Bros. feature film adaptation of Akira. The last thing we heard was that they were looking at Star Trek Beyond director Justin Lin to helm the film. It’s been over nine months since then, but the project isn’t dead.

With Ghost in the Shell being released soon, the studio is looking to get back into action on the project. According to a recent report from Jeff Sneider from Meet The Movie Press, sources close to the production have told him the studio is currently circling two directors. Those directors are Daniel Espinosa, who recently directed that fantastic sci-fi film Life, and David Sandberd, who is the director of the fun horror movie Lights Out.

He goes on to say that it’s more likely that the job will go to Espinosa, which I don't really have any issues with.

The live-action film adaptation of that most iconic work of Japanese manga and anime, "Akira," has been in development for well over a decade with numerous directors and actors attached at various times.

Before Justin Lin, Jaume Collet-Serra and the Hughes brothers were linked, it was Irish short filmmaker Ruairi Robinson ("The Last Days on Mars") who was attached to direct the project which would shift the focus from the New Tokyo of the original to 'New Manhattan'.

Like the original story it would follow Kaneda, the leader of a biker gang, who must save his friend Tetsuo from government medical experiments after potentially destructive psychokinetic abilities emerge.

A few years ago Robinson quietly slipped out some concept art from the film which seemingly went by unnoticed until it resurfaced this weekend over at Bloody Disgusting. That art, which comes from Robinson's official site includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tetsuo, Chris Evans as Kaneda,...

Warner Bros. has been developing a live-action version of Akira for years. Since 2002 several directors have been attached to the project including Stephen Norrington, Gary Whitta, Albert Hughes, Ruairi Robinson, and Jaume Collet-Serra. Now it sounds like there’s a new name we’ll be adding to that list.

According to The Wrap’s Jeff Sneider on an appearance on Meet the Movie Press podcast, the studio is courting director Justin Lin to take on the challenge of bringing Akira to life. Lin is the director behind Star Trek Beyond and three films in The Fast and the Furious franchise.

There’s no other information than that, but I think Lin is a solid choice to direct this film. With films like Fast and Furious and Star Trek under his belt, Lin is primed and ready to tackle a project like Akira.

I hope this news is true, and if it is,...

Warner Bros. Pictures have spent a long time developing a live-action feature adaptation of the acclaimed manga and its subsequent 1988 anime feature "Akira". Several different filmmakers have been attached at different points including Stephen Norrington, Gary Whitta, Albert Hughes, Ruairi Robinson, and Jaume Collet-Serra.

Now a new name has been added to the list. Speaking to Meet The Movie Press, The Wrap writer Jeff Sneider says the studio is keen on "Fast Five" helmer Justin Lin to direct the project.

At last report Marco J. Ramirez had been hired to pen a new draft of the script late last year, one that could be the beginning of a film trilogy.

It looks like Warner Bros. are still determined to get that live-action take on Akira into production. Their planned adaptation of the classic manga/anime has been in and out of development in some form or another since way back in 2002, with the likes of Stephen Norrington, Gary Whitta, Albert Hughes, Ruairi Robinson, and Jaume Collet-Serra all attached to direct at various different times over the years. Despite fierce fan-backlash over the decision to relocate the story to the U.S. and "whitewash" the characters, former The Wrap editor Jeff Sneider reckons the studio are now courting Justin Lin (Star Trek Beyond, The Fast and the Furious 3-6) to helm the project. That's all we have to go on for now - but do you guys think Lin is the right man for the job, or would you rather Akira stayed where it is in Development Hell?...

The platform has acquired North American and Latin American rights to Billy O’Brien’s thriller and recent SXSW premiere.

Max Records, Christopher Lloyd, Laura Fraser and Karl Geary star in the tale of a small-town teen who must keep his homicidal urges at bay while tracking down a supernatural killer.

O’Brien and Christopher Hyde wrote the screenplay based on the novel by Dan Wells. The Irish Film Board, Quickfire Films and The Fyzz Facility financed the film and Floodland Pictures and The Tea Shop & Film Company produced.

Nick Ryan, James Harris and Mark Lane produced and the executive producer roster features Wayne Marc Godfrey, Robert Jones, James Atherton, Jan Pace, John McDonnell, Rory Gilmartin, Billy O’Brien, Avril Daly, Ruairi Robinson, Robbie Ryan, Bertrand Faivre, Ruth Kenley-Letts and Afolabi Kuti.

IFC Midnight negotiated the deal with Andrew Orr and Nada Cirjanic of Independent Film Company.

Like a grizzled old sea captain chasing a white whale, Warner Bros. are still doggedly pursuing the idea of a live-action remake of classic anime “Akira.” The 1988 original film, based on a manga, is seen as one of the absolute classics of the form, and the studio have been actively developing a remake since 2002, with Ruairi Robinson and Albert Hughes among the directors involved. It got very close to production back in 2011, with “Non Stop” helmer Jaume Collet-Serra directing, a script by “Harry Potter” writer Steve Kloves, and Garret Hedlund, Ken Watanabe, Kristen Stewart and Helena Bonham Carter among the actors. But the movie fell apart, with a cautious Warners shutting down production at the beginning of 2012 (followed swiftly by public criticism of the approach from Toby Kebbell, one of the actors in the running for the film), before Collet-Serra was re-hired, and re-fired, more recently. Read More: Rumor: Warner Bros. Wants More Batman,...

Warner Bros. Pictures is still reportedly pursuing its plans for a live-action film adaptation of the classic manga "Akira" and its famed 1988 anime film.

The likes of Ruairi Robinson, Albert Hughes and Jaume Collet-Serra have been attached as director whilst Garret Hedlund, Ken Watanabe, Kristen Stewart, Toby Kebbell and Helena Bonham Carter have all be linked as actors in the film at some point over the past fifteen years.

Now, "Daredevil" second season show runner Marco J. Ramirez has reportedly been hired to pen a new draft of the script says Den Of Geek. Not only that, the plan reportedly is for the property to be turned into a trilogy of movies.

On top of that, filmmaker Christopher Nolan has reportedly "met with a previously attached filmmaker within the past three months to talk about the project." Could the "Dark Knight" franchise director serve as a producer on this trilogy?...

The new promotional organisation will kick off later this month with the first in an annual festival roadshow in Los Angeles and New York.

The flagship event will kick off with the Isa/La Festival on September 25 in Los Angeles at the USC School Of Cinematic Arts, while the Isa/NY Festival launches on October 2 in New York at Nyu’s Cantor Film Center.

The slate will include the Us Premiere of Frank Berry’s teen drama I Used to Live Here, the West Coast premiere of Daisy Asquith’s After The Dance, Screen La Star Of Tomorrow Gerard Barrett’s Sundance entry Glassland and the Us premiere of Traders (pictured) by Rachel Moriarty and Peter Murphy.

The Los Angeles programme will include the panel Stories From The Field: Three Irish Film Directors In Hollywood with directors Ruairi Robinson, Ciaran Foy and Gary Shore, as well as masterclasses from screenwriter Naomi Sheridan in Los Angeles and [link...

I don’t know what’s going on with Deadline’s latest story about the Metal Gear Solid movie but there are a couple of odd glitches.

First of all, the URL also mentions Ruairi Robinson’s Leviathan and the X-Men despite them having nothing to do with the content at all. Secondly, it ends by telling us that Monsters: Dark Continent is currently in post production when, actually, it premiered at the London film festival something like five months ago.

Here’s hoping they managed to not screw up with the main thrust of the story, which is simple enough: Jay Basu will write the script for the Metal Gear Solid film.

Basu scripted Dark Continent, which is in Us cinemas in couple of weeks then UK cinemas in early May, which makes the timing of this new announcement pretty much spot-on.

I don’t think Basu will have...

About a week ago, a short film called "The Leviathan" appeared online and immediately got the attention of sci-fi lovers. The film became so popular that it got the attention of 20th Century Fox, which just announced that it will turn the project into a feature film. "The Leviathan" is directed by Ruairi Robinson, who is best known for being the first director attached to Warner Bros' live-action "Akira" movie. The short film is written by Jim Uhls (Fight Club) and contains creature design by Jordu Schell, one of the main designers on "Avatar." Fox already attached Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past) to produce and Neill Blomkamp (director of "District 9" and "Chappie") to executive produce. Uhls will provide the screenplay. Check out the short film below and here's the plot synopsis: By the early 22nd century mankind had colonized many worlds. Faster than light travel was made...

The Leviathan Short Film. Ruairi Robinson‘s The Leviathan (2015) short film‘s plot synopsis: “By the early 22nd century mankind had colonized many worlds. Faster than light travel was made possible by harvesting exotic matter from the eggs of the largest species mankind has ever seen. Those that take [...]

Continue reading: The Leviathan (2015) Short Film: Ruairi Robinson’s Short That Landed Fox Film Deal...

It's been a good week and a half for Irish director Ruairi Robinson. After his proof of concept/pitch trailer for sci-fi movie The Leviathan caused quite a stir on the Internet, it soon attracted the attention Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past), who attached himself to the project as producer, and District 9 director Neill Blomkamp, who came on board as executive producer. Now, courtesy of Variety, we have found out the movie has found a home at 20th Century Fox, with the studio picking up the project up to expand it into a feature film. Robinson will direct from a script by Fight Club's Jim Uhls, with the story, taking cues from literary sources like Dune and Moby Dick, concerning a 22nd century where faster than light travel is achieved by harvesting the eggs of massive flying whales. For those who haven't seen the pitch trailer,...

Just 10 days after the proof-of-concept trailer was first released, 20th Century Fox has picked up the sci-fi thriller The Leviathan from director Ruairi Robinson (The Last Days on Mars). We reported earlier this week that Simon Kinberg has come aboard to produce with Neill Blomkamp serving as an executive producer. Simon Kinberg has a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox, so the project landing here makes perfect sense.

The Leviathan is set in the 22nd Century, where mankind has developed the ability to travel faster than the speed of light. This is made possible by harvesting exotic matter from the largest creatures Earth has ever seen, but those who are tasked with obtaining the matter do so involuntarily. Ruairi Robinson's three-minute proof-of-concept video has been viewed more than 1.2 million times since debuting last week, which helped build plenty of buzz for this sci-fi film's potential.

Ruairi Robinson is directing...

Ruairi Robinson's proof-of-concept teaser for The Leviathan shocked and awed millions of people who played it on their computer screens, so imagine the jaw-dropping look the feature film adaptation will have on the big screen now that 20th Century Fox has picked up the Simon Kinberg and Neill Blomkamp-produced project.

Variety reports that 20th Century Fox has picked up the pitch to make a feature film adaptation of Ruairi Robinson's The Leviathan. The news comes less than a week after it was revealed that Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past) would produce and Blomkamp (Chappie, upcoming Alien film) would executive produce a feature film version of the three-plus minute video that featured dazzling digital effects and a colossal creature soaring through a cloud-shrouded sky. The move makes sense, as Kinberg has a first-look deal with 20th Century Fox and Blomkamp is currently set to scribe and helm...

Movement on Ruairi Robinson‘s proposed sci-fi film The Leviathan happened fast. The director posted a proof of concept trailer just days ago, which led to Neill Blomkamp and Simon Kinberg joining the project as producers. Now Fox has bought the The Leviathan movie pitch and the script for the film, written by Jim Uhls (Fight Club). Variety reports. […]

The post Fox Picks Up ‘The Leviathan’ appeared first on /Film.

Shortly after unveiling a proof of concept video, Simon Kinberg and Neill Blomkamp signed up to join Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson for his upcoming sci-fi feature, The Leviathan, and now, merely four days later, the film has a major studio backing it as well. As reported by Variety, 20th Century Fox just snatched up Robinson’s pitch. The story is set in the 22nd century when traveling faster than the speed of light is made possible by harvesting the exotic matter in the eggs of these absolutely enormous whale-like creatures. Thanks to the practice, mankind has been able to colonize many worlds, but it comes at a cost because those who track down these creatures are being forced into involuntary labor. Robinson is attached to direct the film with Jim Uhls (Fight Club, Jumper) penning the script. Blomkamp is on board as an executive producer and Kinberg will produce. If...

Busy on another story, I just got beaten to the punch by Variety on news that Fox acquired Leviathan, a film that Ruairi Robinson will direct, based on a short film we wrote about previously. But the story was a bit incomplete. Fox bought a spec script (not a pitch) by Fight Club scribe Jim Uhls, not a pitch as our sister publication reported. I’m told the studio paid mix six against seven figures for the script. That’s pretty good right there, but the driving force…...

This week's must see video comes at us care of Dutch commercials producer PostPanic. The company has been making visually stylish commercials for years but they recently launched a film and television division and with it, a nearly 15 minute proof of concept video that has more wow moments than anything you've seen since Ruairi Robinson's breathtaking, and soon to be feature film, The Leviathan.

Directed by Mischa Rozema, the co-founder and creative director of PostPanic, Sundays is an ambitious pensive bit of sci-fi, the story of Ben (Brian Petsos), a man who slowly begins to realise that Isabelle (Sofia Sisniega), the only woman he has ever l [Continued ...]...

If you're still trying to get your jaw off the floor after watching The Leviathan proof of concept trailer that debuted last week from Ruairi Robinson, then you might want to sit down before taking this in: Simon Kinberg and Neill Blomkamp are looking to bring Robinson's stunning vision of the flying colossal creature to the big screen.

According to /Film, Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past) is producing and Blomkamp (Chappie, upcoming new Alien film) is executive producing The Leviathan feature film that will be directed by Ruairi Robinson (The Last Days on Mars) from a screenplay by Jim Uhls (Fight Club). Stay tuned to Daily Dead for further details. In case you haven't seen it yet, we have the proof of concept trailer for The Leviathan.

"By the early 22nd century mankind had colonized many worlds. Faster than light travel was made possible by harvesting exotic matter from...

Read More: Why We're Too Quick to Write Off New Directors Since Ruairi Robinson's epic short/teaser "The Leviathan" hit the internet on March 16, multitudinous views on YouTube and Vimeo and fan chatter has led to some big names taking notice. Deadline has reported that "X-Men" writer-producer Simon Kinberg has joined the feature length project as a producer. Jim Uhls ("Fight Club") will be writing the screenplay. Finally, and most notably, "District 9," "Elysium" and "Chappie" director Neill Blomkamp has joined the project as an executive producer. As Deadline points out, Kinberg has a first-look deal with Fox, which might prove beneficial for the project. Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson was nominated for an Academy Award for his 2001 short film "Fifty Percent Grey," an intriguing animated film which follows a soldier’s afterlife experience. Robinson put the short for "The...

One week ago we posted an amazing short film in our Cool Videos column, showcasing Ruairi Robinson's The Leviathan. The short, while light on story, displayed some exceptional effects and camera work. The short followed that of slave labor hunting down a massive creature. Space whaling, if you will. Well, it looks as those we weren't the only ones impressed as visionary director Neill Blomkamp (Chappie) and uber-producer Simon Kinberg (X-men: Days Of Future Past) are looking...

Neill Blomkamp probably wouldn't be where he is today without the help of Peter Jackson, who produced District 9 after the younger director's gig helming a Halo movie fell through. Now Blomkamp is a big deal, especially with his plans to make the next Alien sequel, and it's his turn to be the benefactor. According to Deadline, he's teaming with Simon Kinberg -- writer of X-Men movies and producer of Blomkamp's Elysium and Chappie -- to oversee a feature by Ruairi Robinson based on a very hot proof-of-concept short that made the rounds on the internet last week. Based on that viral video (watch it down below), The Leviathan has been described as "Moby Dick in space," and in an interview with Film School Rejects, Robinson personally...

Read More...

Things are ramping up for Ruairi Robinson's potentially awesome sci-fi pic, The Leviathan. It has only been a short while since the director dropped his proof of concept like an atomic bomb last week, clocking in over 1 million views already. And some considerable sci-fi firepower has hopped on board to get a full feature realized. Mankind has colonized many worlds in a time when travel faster than the speed of light has been made possible by the harvesting of exotic matter from the eggs of the largest species mankind has ever seen. Those that take part in the hunt for the matter are mostly involuntary labor.Simon Kinberg has sci-fi chops growing out of his ears! He is a producer of many X-Men films, Blomkamp's Elysium and Chappie, Ridley Scott's...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Last week, director Ruairi Robinson (The Last Days on Mars) debuted a three and a half minute proof-of-concept video for a new sci-fi thriller entitled The Leviathan. The video has already amassed nearly 2 million views through Vimeo, YouTube and other platforms. While the project doesn't have a studio home quite yet, Deadline reports that Simon Kinberg has come aboard to produce, while Neill Blomkamp has signed on to executive produce.

After the video debuted last week, a number of producers contacted Ruairi Robinson about signing on to his project, but they were all "blown out of the water" after Simon Kinberg came on board. Simon Kinberg does have a first-look deal in place at 20th Century Fox, making the studio a possible home for The Leviathan. However, even if they pass, there will be plenty of studio suitors waiting in the wings.

The story is set in the early 22nd Century,...

Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson owes an awful lot to the power of the Internet. His sci-fi short, The Leviathan, made its humble debut on Vimeo and YouTube last week with nary a studio or big name attached to it, but soon accumulated a staggering two million views across both video sharing platforms. Now, the project has garnered some real, A-lister attention in the form of Simon Kinberg along with District 9 and soon-to-be Alien helmer, Neill Blomkamp.

That’s according to a report published by Deadline, who bring word that the creative filmmaker expressed an interest in the intriguing, futuristic property shortly after it went viral. Such an agreement now means that Kinberg – who is honing his sci-fi chops through work on Star Wars: The Force Awakens – will assume first-look responsibilities should Robinson want to take The Leviathan to the silver screen with studio backing, which is a crucial...

Ruairi Robinson‘s proof of concept trailer for The Leviathan became an overnight sensation when it hit Vimeo and YouTube last week, and Hollywood has taken notice. A feature film is now in the works with two men who know a thing or two about bringing vast sci-fi universes to life: Simon Kinberg (X-Men) and Neill […]

The post Simon Kinberg Will Turn Ruairi Robinson’s ‘The Leviathan’ Into a Full-Length Feature appeared first on /Film.

"X-Men" and "Star Wars" franchise producer and writer Simon Kinberg has come on board to produce a feature film adaptation of the stunning sci-fi short "The Leviathan".

At the same time, writer/director Neill Blomkamp ("District 9," "Chappie") has also joined the project as executive producer. Jim Uhls ("Fight Club," "Jumper") has already penned the screenplay for the feature.

Ruairi Robinson ("The Last Days on Mars") created the 3.5 minute proof-of-concept piece which is set in the 22nd century and follows involuntarily drafted pilots who hunt giant whale-like flying creatures through the skies. In a week the short has racked up nearly two million views.

Source: Deadline...

Last week, a proof of concept/pitch trailer for Irish director Ruairi Robinson's (The Last Days of Mars) The Leviathan hit the web, and the original sci-fi concept was met with praise across the board, racking up early two million views across Vimeo and Youtube. Based on a screen play from Fight Club scribe Jim Uhls, the short featured impressive visuals crafted by Robinson himself, and told the 22nd century set story of involuntarily drafted pilots who hunt gigantic flying whales through the skies. It was a fantastically realised short that richly deserves to be put on the big screen. Now, it's looking like that might actually happen with Deadline revealing that X-Men: Days of Future Past writer Simon Kinberg has signed onto the project as producer, which should go a long way to securing the project a studio, especially considering his cache at Fox. Furthermore, it is also...

Big news! Remember that awesome proof-of-concept teaser called The Leviathan we posted a week ago? It attracted some attention and now has two more major producers working on it. Deadline is reporting that fellow sci-fi director Neill Blomkamp (of District 9, Elysium and Chappie) is joining the creative team to develop as executive producer, plus screenwriter/producer Simon Kinberg (of This Means War, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Fantastic Four) will produce the project. Ruairi Robinson, the director behind The Leviathan, wrote on Twitter that he "could not hope for a better team to do this movie with." Hopefully this means the short proof will actually be made into an entire feature, because I already want to see more of it. As of yet, there is no mention of a studio deal but it sounds like there is something brewing. Deadline does mention that Simon "Kinberg's first-look deal with Fox...

Ruairi Robinson has been a name known by online movie blog readers for some time beginning with his 2011 short Blinky about a killer robot (watch it here) and then in 2013 came his debut feature film The Last Days on Mars (read my review here), which didn't exactly blow the doors off, but didn't close them either. Now he's back with another short film, this one serving as a proof of concept with hopes to turn it into a feature film and it has definitely found support, both from online viewers and now from a couple of high profile supporters. Premiering just under a week ago, Robinson's The Leviathan tease (watch it below) has generated millions of views on Vimeo and YouTube. Set in the 22nd Century, the "Moby Dick"-inspired story finds mankind has colonized many worlds as the ability to travel at the speed of light is now a...

On Tuesday of last week, the internet exploded with Ruairi Robinson' The Leviathan, a spectacular three and a half minutes of awesome which Robinson laboured over for 16 hour days for over a year to create – without promise of a payday at the end of the journey. Just a hope.

The work has paid off in spades.

Deadline is reporting that X-Men writer and producer Simon Kinberg and writer/director Neill Blomkamp have both signed onto Robinson's movie as executive producers and since Kinberg has a first look deal at Fox, this could well turn into the studio's next big sci-fi extravaganza.

It's not the first time a web video has netted a filmmaker a gig [Continued ...]...

Last week, we were among the first websites to enthusiastically write-up director Ruairí Robinson’s stunning sci-fi proof-of-concept short The Leviathan. Now, according to Deadline, prolific writer/producer Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Cinderella, “Star Wars Rebels”) has come on board to produce the film along with writer/director Neill Blomkamp (with whom Kinberg produced Elysium…

The post Simon Kinberg and Neill Blomkamp Board Hot Sci-fi Project The Leviathan appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

Neill Blomkamp has joined sci-fi project The Leviathan as an executive producer.

Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson's three-and-a-half-minute concept video has already notched up 1.2 million views on Vimeo and hundreds of thousands of plays on YouTube.

Set in the early 22nd century, the film centres around slaves used to harvest the produce that mankind develops across the many worlds it has colonised.

The colonisation has been made possible since travel has become faster than the speed of light.

X Men writer and producer Simon Kinberg has also signed up for The Leviathan, according to Deadline.

Blomkamp is also developing another Alien movie starring Sigourney Weaver.

Watch Neill Blomkamp and Sigourney Weaver discuss the next Alien movie with Digital Spy below:...

After blowing up big on the internet, Ruairi Robinson's space whale action movie is going to be a feature movie with two major producers.

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You might think that Simon Kinberg would be too busy writing scripts and serving as producer on a variety of different projects across a number of studios, but apparently he’s found time to help shepherd another potential film. He’s teaming up with Chappie director Neill Blomkamp to assist The Last Days On Mars director Ruairi Robinson with his latest embryonic film idea, The Leviathan.Robinson has been generating lots of interest for the high-concept sci-fi story, putting out a proof of concept video (see above) that has been racking up the views and seeing his phone ringing off the hook with producers interested in joining the team. Kinberg, who has a first-look deal with Fox, brings a wealth of experience in the genre and potential studio backing. Blomkamp is coming off of his robot pic, which Kinberg produced, and is working on his idea for a new film set in the Alien universe.