New set photos, video from ‘Ready Player One’ movie are steeped in ’80s nostalgia

By Rick Marshall September 6, 2016

Filming is currently underway on Steven Spielberg’s upcoming adaptation of Ready Player One, and the streets of Birmingham, England, have been transformed into the gritty, dystopian future world of Ernest Cline’s best-selling novel.

Some early photos from the set of the film found their way online last month, and now with cameras officially rolling, more shots of the set and videos of the production are popping up — including a few that confirm the film won’t skimp on the 1980s nostalgia that is such a part of Cline’s original story.

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The photos and video were captured by local residents and film fans checking out the Birmingham set of Ready Player One. Along with heaping helpings of 1980s cartoon and movie characters, they also feature a few shots of Spielberg himself directing the cast and creative team on the film.

Here are a few of the noteworthy photos and video clips that found their way to Twitter over the last week or so. They offer a glimpse of the rundown reality the film’s characters inhabit.

Love the look of this! Fun walking through the Birmingham streets seeing it come to life #readyplayerone #spielberg pic.twitter.com/cnFgYu0QG5

— Christopher Bevan (@ChrisBevan89) September 6, 2016

#spielberginbrum directing the cast for #ReadyPlayerOne @GreatCharlesSt pic.twitter.com/dgrh1188UX

— Great Charles Street (@GreatCharlesSt) September 5, 2016

It's very exciting walking to work in the midst of a film set. #ReadyPlayerOne #Birmingham pic.twitter.com/2Hh5rux98h

— Dave Thompson (@DaveThompsonCC) September 6, 2016

#snarf added, set dressing for #ReadyPlayerOne in Livery Street #spielberginbrum #geek #geekfest #Thundercats pic.twitter.com/fP4TqztaBb

— Michelle Green (@Green_Mush) August 25, 2016

#ReadyPlayerOne @GreatCharlesSt Lionel Street. #spielberginbrum pic.twitter.com/SWQmh2v8Vi

— Great Charles Street (@GreatCharlesSt) September 5, 2016

Set dressing Livery Street for #ReadyPlayerOne in @BirminghamJQ @myjq @STPAULS_BRUM @brumpic #spielberginbrum pic.twitter.com/2CcNaMcqBB

— Michelle Green (@Green_Mush) August 24, 2016

Directed by Spielberg, Ready Player One casts X-Men: Apocalypse actor Tye Sheridan as Wade Watts, one of many people caught up in an elaborate treasure hunt in the digital realm of OASIS that will give the winner full control of the virtual universe. Competing against fellow treasure hunters and a sinister corporation looking to monetize OASIS, Wade must use his encyclopedic knowledge of the OASIS creator’s favorite era of pop culture, the 1980s, in order to uncover the ultimate prize.

Along with Sheridan, the film also stars Olivia Cook (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl), Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies), Simon Pegg (Star Trek), T.J. Miller (Deadpool), and Ben Mendelsohn (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story). The script for the film was penned by Zak Penn (The Avengers) and Eric Eason (Manito), as well as Cline.

Ready Player One is scheduled to hit theaters March 30, 2018.

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Here’s your first look at the world of Steven Spielberg’s ‘Ready Player One’

Steven Spielberg's adaptation of the best-selling novel Ready Player One appears to be moving forward at a good clip based on the first unofficial photos and video from the set of the production, which found their way online this week.

While the shots from Birmingham, England, don't reveal too much about the cast of characters in the film, they do offer a taste of the grimy, gritty world that protagonist Wade Watts inhabits when he's not living a virtual existence in the digital universe known as OASIS.

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