Sony Officially Reboots Starship Troopers After Helldivers Movie Announcement

Sony is set to reboot the iconic military sci-fi saga with a new Starship Troopers movie, as confirmed by multiple Hollywood sources. The Hollywood Reporter, backed by Deadline and Variety, announced that acclaimed director Neill Blomkamp, known for films like District 9, Elysium, and Chappie, will helm this new adaptation of Robert A. Heinlein's 1959 novel.

This upcoming project, produced by Sony's Columbia Pictures, marks a fresh start and is not connected to Paul Verhoeven's 1997 cult classic, which famously satirized Heinlein's original work. Blomkamp's version aims to revisit the source material directly, offering a different take on the story.

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

The announcement of Blomkamp's involvement comes at an intriguing time, as Sony also recently revealed plans for a live-action adaptation of the popular PlayStation game Helldivers, developed by Arrowhead. Helldivers, which draws significant inspiration from Verhoeven's Starship Troopers, features soldiers fighting for a satirized fascist regime called Super Earth against alien bugs and other foes.

Sony now finds itself navigating the unique challenge of releasing two films that, while distinct, share thematic similarities. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Blomkamp’s Starship Troopers will diverge from Verhoeven’s satirical approach, focusing instead on the tone and themes of Heinlein's novel, which some interpret as endorsing the very ideologies Verhoeven mocked.

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 these projects come to fruition. Blomkamp's most recent directorial effort was Sony's Gran Turismo, an adaptation of the renowned PlayStation driving simulation series.