Ready Player One Will Be Steven Spielberg's Next Film, To Be Released December 15, 2017

It's official! Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures and DreamWorks have formally announced that Steven Spielberg (Minority Report, A.I.) will direct the film adaptation of Ernest Cline's sci-fi novel Ready Player One and they've set a release date: December 15, 2017.

"Any film from Steven Spielberg is an event film, so it felt right to date this thrilling new project from one of our greatest filmmakers for the holiday season," Warner Bros domestic distribution head Dan Fellman said.

Why is this news? Wasn't Spielberg already attached to this back in March? Yes! But, Spielberg has made it a habit of getting cozy with a project only to ditch it at a moments notice for the next sexy project to walk by. Two examples: Robopocalypse and Harvey.

"From the success of the book, Ready Player One already has a devoted following, and we're excited for its fans and moviegoers everywhere to see this fantastically innovative story come to life," said Sue Kroll, Warner Bros. President of Worldwide Marketing and International Distribution. "We know it couldn't be in better hands, and look forward to working with Steven and the producers to bring it to the big screen."

Ready Player One, based on the 2011 novel by Ernest Cline, follows a teenager who hunts for treasures hidden in virtual reality, Oasis, that is left behind by Oasis' deceased creator. But as the teenager begins cracking the reality's trippy puzzles and clues, he finds that other, more malicious hunters are also on the treasure's trail, and will kill anyone who stands in their way.

(via Deadline)