Netflix are never one to miss an opportunity. The streaming giant likely saw the huge success of Steven Spielberg‘s Ready Player One adaptation last year. A film (and book) that celebrated nerd culture (maybe to a fault) and was filled to the brim with 80s references. It’s no surprise it was a hit in the current pop culture landscape.
Netflix obviously want some of that same success, but without the Ready Player One rights, what can they do? Get the next best thing, of course. The streaming superpower have optioned the rights to Jason Rekulak‘s novel, The Impossible Fortress. The YA book celebrates the early days of computer programming, 80s pop culture, and the internet’s days of yore, when dial-up ruled the land.
Jason Bateman‘s Aggregate Films is producing the adaptation alongside GoldDay. Ori Marmur and Ivanna Martinez will oversee the project for Netflix, Bateman, Michael Costigan and Adam Wagner are repping Aggregate Films, with Jonathan Goldstein and John Daley developing on behalf of GoldDay.
Rekulak will adapt his own novel for the project. This has all the makings of a hit, as things like 80s nostalgia are still going strong. Netflix should know that well, as it’s what much of the success of Stranger Things is built on. So while fans wait for the inevitable Ready Player One sequel, perhaps The Impossible Fortress can scratch that itch.
#Peace.Love.TheImpossibleFortress
