Skip to main content

Roland Emmerich passed on the movie adaptation of the video game Asteroids

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The gamer nation and film-lovers of the world can collectively breathe a sigh of relief today. A movie based on the popular old-school coin-op arcade game Asteroids may still happen, but Independence Day helmer Roland Emmerich won’t be directing it. The rights have been in the hands of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra producer Dino de Laurentiis since 2009.

Emmerich revealed the news in an interview at the Toronto International Film Festival with Collider. “I was very honored that they wanted to have me as a director, and I kind of liked the script very much, but at that time I was writing with my writing partner Harold Kloser a new script called Singularity and I opted for that.”

While Singularity is a sci-fi project, it should not be confused with the recently released (summer 2010) Activision video game bearing the same title. He revealed that the story takes place 40 years into the future, with trouble brewing that seems to have some shades of Terminator to it. “It’s like kind of this moment where computer technology is so advanced that we kind of—- It’s the danger of losing control.”

Fine, whatever. I’ll see it. As long as it’s not some silly attempt to cash in on a classic video game that never had nor needed a guiding narrative of any kind.

Editors' Recommendations

Adam Rosenberg
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…
How to get to Monkey Island in Sea of Thieves
An election poster for guybrush in Sea of Thieves.

Over the course of its many years of updates and expansions, Sea of Thieves has had a few notable crossovers with other pirate franchises. The Pirates of the Caribbean crossover let you team up with the legendary Jack Sparrow, but the Monkey Island content felt like it came out of nowhere. For those unaware, Monkey Island is a series of pirate point-and-click games that were as funny as the puzzles were obscure. Thankfully, you don't have to intuit that you need to combine a cat whisker with a mason jar to bypass a skeleton guard to get to this new content, but it is more challenging than you might think.

Read more
3 Xbox Game Pass games you need to play this weekend (May 3-5)
Senua in Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice.

Another weekend is upon us, and you're probably looking for some games to kill time with over the course of it. We're in a bit of a lull right now ahead of a flurry of releases starting next week, so it's a great time to dip back into the Xbox Game Pass catalog and check out some games that you may have missed. There are three games in particular that I think you should check out this weekend if you're looking for something to play.

One is an unsettling adventure that's getting an Xbox-exclusive sequel later this month. The next is a finely animated roguelike indie that recently made its way to Microsoft's gaming subscription service. Finally, there's a relaxing adventure that gives players a lot of freedom, yet is short enough to beat in a weekend. If you're having trouble deciding what to play this weekend, give one of these games a shot.
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice

Read more
3 underrated PS Plus games you should play this weekend (May 3-5)
The main character of Tales of Kenzera: Zau stands with two elemental items.

PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra have been around for almost two years, and during that time the subscription service has established itself as an ample competitor to Xbox Game Pass. That means there is a wealth of great games for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 owners to check out if they're looking for something to play this weekend. I think PS Plus subscribers should be looking toward some of the more underrated games in the subscription service this weekend too.

I have three particular picks in mind. The first is an enjoyable Metroidvania that came to PS Plus' game catalog when it launched just a couple of weeks ago and deserves a lot more attention than it's getting. After that, there's an action-platformer that pays homage to series like Ninja Gaiden that you should check out before it leaves the catalog. Finally, there's a PS2-era Star Wars game that fills the niche a recently canceled game would have.
Tales of Kenzera: Zau

Read more