If you paid any attention to Cinema Blend over the last year, you’d know that Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon’s The Cabin in the Woods was adored around these parts. As a result, seeing Goddard secure a second directing gig is very interesting news indeed. That it’s taking him to another planet entirely is pretty fricking amazing.
The Wrap reports Goddard is in negotiations to write and direct an adaptation of author Andy Weir's The Martian for Fox and Genre Films. The novel was originally released as an e-book, but has since been bought out by Crown Publishing, a subsidiary of Random House, and will see a hardback release in 2014. A theatrical film based on the film could do quite a lot to improve sales.
The titular Martian is a man stranded on Mars who needs to figure out how to survive on the planet long enough for his return trip back to Earth. The source calls the film “a cross between Apollo 13 and Cast Away,” which is in no way a vague way of saying, “Tom Hanks might have something to do with this.” With films like Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity and Sebastián Cordero’s Europa Report hitting theaters this year, it’s a good time to be a fan of original space thrillers.
Goddard’s other credits include the scripts for Cloverfield and Steven Spielberg’s Robopocalypse, which was recently put on hold. The writer/director also touched up parts of the script for Marc Forster’s upcoming World War Z. Goddard definitely seems like the right kind of filmmaker for this material. I wonder they’ll find a cabin on the moon…
