Sony Officially Reboots Starship Troopers After Helldivers Movie Announcement

Sony is reportedly developing a new reboot of the Starship Troopers franchise, with acclaimed director Neill Blomkamp, known for films like District 9, Elysium, and Chappie, set to write and direct. This new project, announced by The Hollywood Reporter and confirmed by Deadline and Variety, will be a fresh adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 military sci-fi novel, produced by Sony's Columbia Pictures.

Paul Verhoeven's Starship Troopers satirized the novel upon which it is based. Photo by TriStar Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images.

This upcoming film is distinct from Paul Verhoeven's 1997 cult classic, which took a satirical approach to Heinlein's work. Blomkamp's version aims to return to the original tone and themes of the novel, which some interpret as promoting the very ideals that Verhoeven's film critiqued.

Interestingly, Sony's decision to greenlight this project comes shortly after announcing a live-action adaptation of the popular PlayStation game Helldivers, developed by Arrowhead. Helldivers, heavily influenced by Verhoeven's Starship Troopers, features soldiers fighting for a satirical fascist regime against alien bugs and other foes, all while promoting "Liberty and Managed Democracy."

The simultaneous development of these two projects raises questions about potential competition between them, especially given their thematic similarities. However, The Hollywood Reporter emphasizes that Blomkamp's Starship Troopers will not be a remake of Verhoeven's film but a new interpretation of Heinlein's source material.

As of now, neither the new Starship Troopers nor the Helldivers movie has a confirmed release date, suggesting fans may have to wait a while before seeing either project come to fruition. Blomkamp's most recent work was Sony's Gran Turismo, an adaptation of the renowned PlayStation driving simulation series.