The author of such dystopian masterpieces as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) and We Can Remember It for You Wholesale (Total Recall) is getting another of his popular novels adapted into a major motion picture.
Philip K. Dick’s Vulcan’s Hammer will be the 14th novel to be turned into a film. This time, Hunger Games and I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence will be taking the wheel through his about:blank company who obtained the movie rights straight from Philip K. Dick’s estate. Lawrence will team up with New Republic Pictures’ Brian Oliver and Bradley Fischer for the project.
The 1960 novel tells the story of a post-war Earth run by a new political organization known as Unity that is in turn controlled by a series of AI known as Vulcan. One of the Vulcan machines, known as Vulcan 3, turns sentient and manufactures its own killer robots on the remaining humans.
While the idea of sentient robots is a huge topic with Dick (even Terminator is said to be inspired by Dick’s novels), this story tackles some timely topics about humanity’s love/hate relationship with automation and polarizing politics in the not-so-distant futuristic time of 2029.
While there is no word yet on a production schedule or casting hopefuls, it is said that Dick’s daughter, Isa Dick Hackett, will be involved. Dick Hackett has helped produce several of her father’s works, including The Man in the High Castle for Amazon.
In addition to working on The Hunger Games and I Am Legend, director Francis Lawrence’s post-apocalyptic pedigree also extends to three episodes of Apple’s See. Lawrence built his reputation in the 90s and 00s directing music videos for some of the world’s most popular acts such as Beyonce, Will Smith, Whitney Houston, J-Lo, and Aerosmith.
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