'Asteroids' heading towards the big screen?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Universal has won an all-out "bidding war" over the film rights to Atari's classic Asteroids video game. We're not entirely sure who all was involved in this "war," but the conflict couldn't possibly be prompted over the universal themes tackled by the story of the plucky little triangular spaceship and the asteroid field it inhabits. As the Reporter, um, reports: "As opposed to today's games, there is no story line or fancy world-building mythology." Michael Bay is rumored to be very interested in directing.

[Via George Ruiz]

[Decoy @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:07PM]

I hope there's a scene where the spaceship keeps flying through the screen, getting faster with each pass.

[kjb434 @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:19PM]

Yes, so the screen will be fixed in space and the action will just come and go across the screen? HAHA

[xcrunk @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:23PM]

Looking forward to the space police flying by randomly, just shooting at you for no good reason.

Pew, pew, pew...

[OneLove @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:29PM]

How would you make a video game like "asteriods" into a movie? And more importantly, why?

[ShogunMaster @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:50PM]

Shogunmaster is very interested in Michael Bay never directing again...

[Alasdair @ Jul 2nd 2009 5:54PM]

Lets just pray to the spaghetti god that Uwe Boll doesn't hear about this.

[Nikesh @ Jul 2nd 2009 6:54PM]

Of course...Shia's in it.

[anup.debnah @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:07PM]

Its PRIME!
No?
sorry.

[CanOfSoup @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:09PM]

"As the Reporter, um, reports: "As opposed to today's games, there is no story line or fancy world-building mythology." Michael Bay is rumored to be very interested in directing."

Done --> Transformers 2?

:D

[teamallyn @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:08PM]

no dream is to big?
no dream is too big.

[Loonie @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:11PM]

To sleep, perchance to big.

[joseph.flatley @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:13PM]

Ha ha! I photoshopped that directly from the Notorious BIG movie poster

[MarkyB86 @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:36PM]

That's great HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA We just looked that up who the hell puts out an incorrect movie poster? , Wait, I digress...

[T-Will @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:54PM]

OMG LOL!

[globgloop @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:01PM]

@joseph.flatley except for the fact that I cannot seem to find any sort of Notorious BIG poster with that miss-spelling... nice try though. let's see the proof

[globgloop @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:04PM]

ah ha! http://www.notorious-big.com/images/notorious_movie_poster.jpg

[slamEVIL @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:52PM]

maybe next time you should photoshop from the REAL movie poster
http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3403257088/tt0472198
just a suggestion...

[joseph.flatley @ Jul 2nd 2009 5:11PM]

or maybe @slamEVIL can just chill out and remember we're just having a little fun here

[slamEVIL @ Jul 2nd 2009 6:22PM]

@joseph.flatley: why do you assume that i'm not joking and everyone else is? i was having fun until i realized you didn't know what sarcasm was. here, does this make it easier for you?

OMG i am soooo totally joking around here but hear me out: maybe next time you should photoshop from the REAL movie poster
http://www.imdb.com/media/rm3403257088/tt0472198
just a suggestion...HAHAHAHAHAHA
bad photochop FTW!

[Bonqueesha @ Jul 2nd 2009 6:50PM]

@slam.EVIL Sarcasm is all about the delivery, be it written or spoken. The sarcasm was there, but it was far too uncouth to take lightly, Note how the sarcasm you employed failed to mold with the rest of the thread. This isn't to say your sarcasm shouldn't be noticed, rather it wasn't obvious enough to be sarcastic.

You see what I did there? :B

[o29 @ Jul 2nd 2009 6:50PM]

@slamEVIL

Someone piss in your Fruit Loops this morning? Chill out.

[raging_hamsterx @ Jul 14th 2009 11:13AM]

common guys. Everyone knows sarcasm is interpreted incorrectly 50% of the time when in written form. Or 100% of the time when I use sarcasm

[jonbruck @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:09PM]

I'd love to see a classic, black and white Asteroids app for the iphone. I know there are updated copies, but I'd like the original.

[esmtll @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:31PM]

@ Paul A. Chapel
Right. Because a classic b&w game MUST ONLY be ported for a device with a ridiculously high contrast ratio. We certainly don't want to compromise on anything. The fact that 1980s television sets had the contrast ratio of a page from the New York Times matters not.

And to answer your question "why?": because more than 5 people own an iPhone.

[Kevin @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:39PM]

Paul's right, OLED is definitely the way to go for asteroids... would make it really pop!

I'd love to see the CRT emulator on it though :-)

[cbgoding @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:01PM]

Wait a secon...is Paul A. Chapel saying that the iPhone isn't the best device in the world for something? Shit, the apocalypse has come sooner than expected.

[Marcus @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:57PM]

where are you posting from? Get to sanding

[Templarian @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:09PM]

*Ship floating in space*

"Holy crap where did all these asteroids come from." "Shoot them all!"

*random flying space craft*

"Income fire captain." "Return Fire!"

[ilovethewaggle @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:15PM]

"What's that cadet? You say my income is on fire!. NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

[Jorvay @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:17PM]

The real cause of the recession is that everybody's income was on fire.

[Jack_Barron @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:09PM]

Did somebody already buy the rights to Pong?

[deanb @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:26PM]

IIRC Fox got the rights to Pac-Man rest year.
Though I am waiting on someone getting the film rights to Tetris, or in your case Pong.

[Machine_Man @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:10PM]

Please, for the love of god, DO NOT LET MICHAEL BAY direct this.

Next thing we know, the spaceships will be able to "teleport" through time.

Funny review on Transformers 2:

http://www.toplessrobot.com/2009/06/bonus_robs_transformers_2_faqs.php

[OneLove @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:27PM]

whats wrong with teleportation?

[BluesK1d @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:29PM]

Michael Bay = Uwe Boll with a HUGE budget

[Jorvay @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:53PM]

Are you kidding? Michael Bay is perfect for this. Think about it:

Asteroids: All action, explosions, and absolutely no plot.

Michael Bay: All action, explosions, and absolutely no plot.

[frank da tank @ Jul 2nd 2009 4:12PM]

Jorvay nailed it.

[benahad @ Jul 4th 2009 4:28PM]

My dad had asteroids once.

[Jon @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:10PM]

What ? I'm pretty sure if they named a Movie "Asteroids" .. No one would have thought it was a take on the game .. Why would you pay for such a awful title of a movie

[cbgoding @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:11PM]

Now there's a Michael Bay movie I'd probably watch.

[coffee @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:14PM]

What is with Michael and Shia?

[Ninbrendo @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:22PM]

I can see them getting all cozy-like, à la Burton and Depp.

[Anthony M. @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:14PM]

Best burn on Michael Bay ever? or Best burn on Michael Bay Ever.

[Chris Are @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:15PM]

Haha, I can't tell if this is real or if it's all just making fun of Transformers.

[cozza99 @ Jul 3rd 2009 1:20AM]

Michael Bay Explosions!
Michael Baysplosions!
Ma-Ba-Sploom!

[yomama84 @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:15PM]

after the abomination of Transformers: ROTF (wahts next? TF3: LMAO)....i think i might just stop watching movies period.

[BluesK1d @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:26PM]

I also suffer from MBMBS (Michael Bay Must Be Stopped). We must unite!

[Dorf @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:29PM]

I know it was a bad movie.. but I was still entertained.. which is very rare for me...

I guess the reason was because Transformers was a toy that was created, then they created a cheesy cartoon just to promote the toy. So that is why I didn't get too fired up about anything... It's not like it was some classic novel that Mikie Bay raped.. or a piece of history *cough* Pearl Harbor *cough*

Now if he would have taken Lord of the Rings and put flames on Aragorn, I would be pissed. :-)

[Bladey @ Jul 2nd 2009 5:54PM]

I'm a mild mannered person. It usually takes alot to 'get to me'

However if I found myself walking down the street, glancing at the other side of the road and saw Micheal Bay walking along talking to Shia over a mocca to go... I'd sprint over there and tw@t him one so 'king hard, seriously he would never make another film.

Hopefully I'd spare other movie goers that horrible need to puke my guts up when watching one of his films.

I blame 'Mr Bay' for the huge rise in torrents... eveyone has just given up on hoping that the flim they pay good money for will actually be worth it.

MBMBS... where do i sign up....

phew, feel better now.. back to my zen garden...

[Jason B. @ Jul 2nd 2009 3:19PM]

I don't think the movie will be about the game persay, but about a middle aged man who has a dream of getting the high score in his favorite childhood videogame. It will probably star Seth Rogan or Jack Black and include stealing an Asteroids arcade machine or some other zany anctics.