Hulu is getting two fantastic sci-fi films from Steven Spielberg’s filmography. Super 8produced by Spielberg, and Ready Player Onedirected by him, will both arrive on the streamer in September.
Super 8 will begin streaming on Hulu on September 1stWhile Ready Player One It won't hit the platform until September 3rd. The first, written and directed by J.J. Abrams, originally hit theaters in 2011 to positive reviews from critics and a box office success. Set in 1979, the film centers on a group of teenagers making their own Super 8 film when a train derails, unleashing a dangerous presence in their town. The second, an adaptation of Ernest Cline's novel of the same name, was released in 2018 to mostly positive reviews. The film, which follows a teenage orphan as he searches for clues to gain ownership of the virtual reality simulation OASIS, was a box office success, grossing over $600 million worldwide.
Fans Waiting for a Ready Player Two Adaptation
While Abrams has no plans for a Super 8 sequel, Spielberg is trying to return to the world of Ready Player One for a sequel based on Cline's 2020 novel, Ready Player Two“We're in the discovery phase, trying to figure out what happens next,” Spielberg shared in March 2024 about the future of Ready Player One franchising. It is currently unclear how faithful the adaptation will be Ready Player Two would be, considering that the 2018 film diverged significantly from the source material, though the basic story remained largely the same. No cast members from the 2018 film have been signed on for the sequel at this time.
Ready Player Two will not be Spielberg's next film. The acclaimed director is currently deep into pre-production on an untitled sci-fi film rumored to be UFO-themed. Spielberg wrote the story for the film, with David Koepp penning the screenplay. He and Koepp last worked together in 2008 Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Emily Blunt has signed on to star in Spielberg’s film, with Colin Firth also in early talks for a role. Universal has set a May 2026 release date for the film.
Spielberg is a pioneer of the modern blockbuster
Most moviegoers should be familiar with Spielberg, who has been churning out commercially successful films since the mid-1970s. His 1975 film, Jawsis often credited with creating the summer blockbuster. His success continued into the 1980s with a string of hits that included ET the alien (1982) and the original Indiana Jones trilogy — Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Temple of Doom (1984), and The Last Crusade (1989).
In the late 1980s, Spielberg began to venture into more dramatic films, which continued into the 1990s with Schindler's List (1993) and Saving Private Ryan (1998). However, he continued to make blockbuster hits, with Jurassic Park (1993) revolutionizing the way Hollywood used CGI in its films. More recently, Spielberg directed a remake of The History of the West Side and the semi-autobiographical drama The Fabelmans.
Super 8 begins streaming on Hulu on September 1, followed by Ready Player One September 3rd.
Source: Hulu