The next Sci-Fi saga (1 Viewer)

[JohnE]

How about Tad Willams Otherland series. I'll also add a voice for Dan Simmons Hyperion series.

If we're talking fantasy I would love to see one of Guy Gavriel Kay's books or series come to the big screen. And the original Dragonlance trilogy would be cool. I would love to see it done in CGI!

 

[Jerry AZ]

How about the Dragon Riders of Pern by Anne McAferey? I'd love to see that done right.

 

[Bill Griffith]

Heinleins Stranger in a strange land would be pretty good. And Hanks would be a greta choice. However there will be alot (alot) cut out of the movie.

Dragonlance - There is a summer. It doesn't follow the timline the first three did though but still its part of the Series.

 

[David Rogers]

My choices for book transfers to SF Movie would be roughly in this order:

Honor Harrington series by David Weber - offers a 'period' feel with the Manticorian aristocratic tradition, yet has future technology and lots of chances for effects and 'thrills' with the space naval setting. The stories are written to emphasize honor and loyalty to the whole, which will translate rather well in the current sentiments of 'honor in war' that society seems to be reveling in. There's the 'cute' sidekick that can be CGed in Nimitz (Honor's treecat companion), political angles to explore amid the war Manticore is preparing for (and is soon fighting in the series) against the Republic of Haven, and all and all I can't see how a good director could fail to produce a fine fine movie out of "On Basilisk Station" if given about US$75mil and about eight months to work on it.

A Hymn Before Battle / Gust Front / When the Devil Dances by John Ringo - gritty SF, military SF. Depicts an alien invader that's been on a path of galactic conquest for centuries, finally arriving at Earth only a few years after the humans are informed of the state of things by the galactic society that's been unsuccessfully battling the hordes of invaders. The series has the same drives that current war and war themed stories have so should appeal on that level. Incorporates powered armor 'done right' and would make everyone longing for a revisting of Starship Troopers giggle with glee as how the armor is used. To watch it on screen, again with a good director given US$75mil and eight months … it would be gangbusters.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card - this one's been 'in the hopper' for about five years now I think. There's been a website up from a film company claiming to be working on it in conjunction with Card, and last I'd heard they were happy with the thought of Haley Joel Osmet taking the role of Ender. That news is over two years old and I doubt they have time to do the movie with Osmet unless they start NOW. I fear this movie may never get made, which is a shame because if they translated the story to script faithfully, it would reach so many many more people it could be beneficial to.

BattleTech (FASA Corporation) - take your pick. The storylines in the Battletech universe are wide and varied, and range from tales set at a 'squad' level of soldiers caught trying to survive amid the craziness of interstellar conflict in a psuedo-lowish-tech environment to grand stories of clashing generals and leaders of empires, fighting from planet to planet in the name of (take your pick). All of this amid and around a battlefield of 100' armed and armored batteloids, with aerospace fighters and spaceships, lots of effects shots and lots of 'ooooh aaaahhh' from the audience.

Iron Man (Marvel Comics) - comic book but I feel it can be labeled SF without stretching very far at all since the primary feature of the character is a suit of highly advanced powered armor. With only the smallest of effort, a script could be written that's true to the Tony Stark character yet also retains a SF look and feel, and there's many stories that could be interesting and fun to watch. The vigilante angle, the driven loner who takes the problems of others on his shoulder, not a new angle for a story certainly.

If you expand the question to include Fantasy I have a list of books that would make blockbuster stories. "Song of Fire and Ice: The Game of Thrones" by George R R Martin, "Sword of Truth" by Terry Goodkind, "Riftwar Series" or the "Daughter of/Servant of/Mistress of Empire" series by Raymond Feist. Any of these would make for an excellent fantasy themed movie.

 

[RobertR]

It's a bit disconcerting to see people respond to a thread titled "The Next Sci-Fi Saga" with suggestions for fantasy movies. I think the thread title should be changed if people are going to think "Sci-Fi" is the same as "fantasy".
I'd enjoy seeing stories from Larry Niven's Known Space series of books, especially Ringworld.

 

[David Meek]

Mine - in order:

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

Mindbridge by Joe Haldeman

The Legacy of Heorot by Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle and Steven Barnes

The Mote In God's Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

The Pliocene Exile Trilogy by Julian May

Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke

The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov

 

[Jack Briggs]

It's pleasing to see so many here who know their literary SF. Bravo. Also bravo the suggestion about Frederick Pohl's Gateway series--at least the first novel, which was a Hugo Award winner.

Dunno about Tom Hanks playing Valentine Michael Smith, though (re Heinlein's Stranger).

 

[Steve Enemark]

Yeah, Tom Hanks seems too old for that role, I pictured Smith as a young man, mid-twenties maybe. However, I read the book years ago, and don't remember if that's the way Heinlein wrote it or if that's just the way I remember it.
Put me down for the following sf adaptations:
Earth Abides, by George Stewart
the Riverworld novels, by Philip Jose Farmer
the Robot novels, by Isaac Asimov
The Humanoids, by Jack Williamson
Ringworld, by Larry Niven
Heck, just about anything by Clarke, Heinlein, Asimov, Haldeman or Pohl.

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Good call on The Humanoids, by Jack Williamson.
Hell, 'With Folded Hands' would be a good anthology piece (or maybe an 'Outer Limits' episode).
As far as saga goes, I'd vote for the "ware" (Software, Wetware, Realware, etc) books by Rudy Rucker.
And I'd love to see any of his other novels turned into a film. Though, many of them would be practically impossible!
In retrospect, that would also be a problem with the "ware" books.

 

[Jeremy Jones]

HOPEFULLY, if all goes well, there will be a new Sci-Fi saga coming in the next 2-5 years. I'm writing it now and hope to be done in about 2 more months. Then, I'm going to shop it around. It will be a trilogy, it will be story driven, and it should be the biggest original hit since the Matrix. I know I'm dreaming big here, but I'm REALLY hoping if it does get picked up, Ridley Scott will direct. It's his style of movie.

 

[Sean Oneil]

I have always wanted to see a film series version of 'MACROSS'

Something like that could REALLY be incredible, if the right people were at the helm, and there was enough money being spent on the production of the films.

Get ILM to handle the effects and just let them go crazy... creating all of the Mechs, the outer space battles, the zentradi race & fleet, the SDF-1 interior and exterior... I mean just about EVERYTHING would have to be done digitally except for the actors. With the right director and art crew in charge, and with some really talented actors, I think that a MACROSS series of films could truly be epic. Of course, Rydstrom would have to do the surround mix -I mean if they were done the way I am visualizing them, they would really be great.

To do something of that scope though, which would contain nearly all of the original material (there would have to be TENS OF THOUSANDS of extremely intricate FX shots), you would be talking about a budget well over 600 million for 4 three hour films ...perhaps as high as 800 million or more.

However, if these films were done properly, I think that they would appeal to a very broad audience, possibly approaching Star Wars numbers when all was said and done. It would be a hell of a gamble for a studio to take, but it has obvious potential to be great.

 

[JerryW]

Iron Man (Marvel Comics) - comic book but I feel it can be labeled SF without stretching very far at all since the primary feature of the character is a suit of highly advanced powered armor. With only the smallest of effort, a script could be written that's true to the Tony Stark character yet also retains a SF look and feel, and there's many stories that could be interesting and fun to watch. The vigilante angle, the driven loner who takes the problems of others on his shoulder, not a new angle for a story certainly.

I have a feeling we'll see this one in a couple years. Is it just me, or would Denzel Washington make an awesome Tony Stark? If not Denzel, what about Lawrence Fishburne? Either one would be stellar. Get Bryan Singer to direct it and you'd have a pretty big hit on your hands.

Then of course, there's the Daredevil project that's already in the works. The next few years we're going to see quite a few comic book adaptions. I'm really looking forward to them.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Steve: You're correct in your memory. Michael Valentine Smith was born on Mars and raised by the natives until he was "rescued" by the second manned expedition to the Red Planet. He was in his twenties by the time he was entrusted into Jubal Harshaw's care--as well as the tender ministrations of Miriam, Anne, and Dorcas.

 

[Max Leung]

I believe Iain M. Banks' "Consider Phlebas" has been optioned out for a movie adaption. Think philosophical space opera, with a major interstellar war as the backdrop (10's of billions of lives lost). Shapeshifters, assassinations, destruction of an orbital (beautifully described in the book), where the main combatants are a militaristic spacefaring race versus the Culture, a race that lives in perpetual utopia guided by their machine-intelligence keepers (the Minds).
I still believe Banks is the best fiction writer of the 20th century...just read "The Bridge" and you'll understand why he's so highly regarded. Hmm, actually, "The Bridge" would make a great Fantasy film...but it would likely be too surreal for most audiences.
Another sci-fi series I'd love to see on the big screen: David Wingrove's Chung Kuo septology. Personally, I think only the first 4 books should be done (or at least up to the end of the White Mountain). Set in a China-dominated future...where the ruling Chinese elite have rewritten history and built "The City" which spans every continent on Earth, and rises one mile into the air. Background: Genocide, racism, terrorism, freedom versus tyranny, chaos versus order, over-population, corruption, politics, forbidden women, genetic engineering, war, and the human desire to reach outer space.
Quite frankly, the Chung Kuo series ranks as one of the greatest sci-fi space opera series I've ever read. The scope of the novels is mind-boggling, the emotions of the characters are spot-on and perfectly realized, and the author capture perfectly the ideals and tyranny of the ancient chinese empire ("Life is cheap, flesh plentiful". Not to be missed by any serious sci-fi afficiando.
Now that I think about it, Chung Kuo will never be made into a movie or TV series...the violence is staggering, the ideologies presented, even if historically accurate (the ancient Chinese were, to be frank, the most racist people on Earth), will not be palatable to most people in the Western world, and the depiction of terrorist acts (on the scale of millions dead) will hit too close too home. But I can only dream...

 

[Rex Bachmann]

Almost anything by the late A.E. van Vogt. He had a number of novelettes and short story collections that might make good and interesting, thought-inspired ("general semantics" anyone?) serial movies.

I've always been partial to his short fiction, though.

"Ship of Darkness" is my favorite. Might not be good for a feature, though.

 

[Richard_D_Ramirez]

HOPEFULLY, if all goes well, there will be a new Sci-Fi saga coming in the next 2-5 years

Don't hold yer breath. With Hollywood these days focusing on reaping the almighty $, we'll probably see many more Science Fantasy sagas before we see a serious Science Fiction saga.... :frowning:
8^B

 

[Adam_S]

RE Ender's Game
Ender's Game will be made when a company agrees to finance the 90 million dollar budget, keep card on as at least co executive producer, and stick to only Card's script. THe production company also absolutely must guarantee Ender will be nine or ten in the film before Card signs away any rights. ANyone want to lay bets down when this will get picked up?
about Jake Lloyd and Haley Joel Osment.
Jake Lloyd read Ender's Game on the set of Phantom menace, he was so impacted by the book that he requested a private interview with OSC. From that interview Card was blown away by the acting ability and Ender persona Jake put on, he proceeded to rewrite the screenplay with the focus on Ender (previous drafts kept the focus on the adults manipulation of Ender, Card not believing a child actor could be found capable of carrying the film). May 99 roles around and critics universally condemn Jake Lloyd for basically every problem in the film, his career is destroyed, Card can't get EG made. August 99 comes around Sixth Sense comes out, everyone is talking about how Haley Joel Osment should have been Anakin, and is the greatest child actor ever (a good contender for the title, at the very least). Card doesn't see Sixth Sense until it comes out on video, the advertising makes him feel they ripped off his novel Lost Boys, and as a result of Sixth Sense's success that novel will never be made a film. By the time Card sees Sixth Sense it's too late to get HJO attached to Ender's Game, he's committed to Pay it Forward and other projects, by the tiem he's completed those, financiers aren't willing to risk 90 million dollars on the possibility of a voice change and a growth spurt.
for more on the Ender's Game movie check out my website www.philoticweb.net the movie section.
Adam

 

[Phil Florian]

If Van Vogt is it, I personally love Weapon Shops of Isher (I think that is it). Great stuff. I don't know if the SF purists will protest, but gimme Philip K. Dick's A Scanner Darkly. Cheap to make really and the SF elements are minimal but important to both the story and character development. Attach recent drug-fiend actor Johnny Depp to it and it is gold, baby, gold.
Phil

 

[Phil Florian]

...re: Enders Game. This shows why OSC won't get the movie made. When it comes to young actors, you have to strike as soon as a kid is identified, because by the time you see them on the big screen, they are a year older and if they are good (like Osmet and that kid from Unbreakable) they are signed on for flicks to take them into their teens. I think OSC just needs to be bold and do a casting call and get the ball rolling. If he waits for M. Night or Spielberg to cast another movie then it will be too late. Has there been any movie done about/from an OSC book/short story?

Phil

 

[Adam_S]

OSC's sole cyberpunk, the short story "Dogwalker" has been optioned as an independent movie and is in some stage of production, it's definitly much further along then Ender's Game at this point. One of the key changes I seem to remember is that it's been set in new orleans instead of greensboro, but other than that I don't know much about it. there might be some info up at www.frescopictures.com which is the production company OSC founded with Robert Chartoff and holds all the rights to his stories (since OSC owns half of fresco).
Adam