Phil Lord and Chris Miller, better known by their filmmaking moniker Lord and Miller, have a very distinctive style and reputation among film fans. Through films like “21 Jump Street,” “The LEGO Movie,” and most recently, “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” no matter if they’re writing, directing, and/or producing, their signature humor, heart, and quippy dialogue are evident. If there was a book industry equivalent to that, you’d probably be talking about “The Martian” author Andy Weir. And perhaps fatefully, the men are all going to collaborate on a film.
According to Deadline, best-selling author, Weir, will develop an original film idea alongside Lord and Miller, as part of their deal with Universal. As mentioned, Weir is probably best known for his sci-fi/adventure novel “The Martian,” which was turned into the award-winning film starring Matt Damon and directed by Ridley Scott. His follow-up novel, “Artemis,” was also best-selling and has been in development since before it was released. The most recent news about the film version actually had Lord and Miller on board as directors back in 2017.
Both novels show that Weir has a strong handle on plot, character, and humor, which again, makes him a great fit with the sensibilities of Lord and Miller. There’s no word on what the original idea might be for the film that Weir is developing with the filmmaking duo, but common sense would dictate that it’s going to be sci-fi influenced with plenty of actual science (“The Martian” and “Artemis” are filled with solid science-based plots), adventure, and quippy leads.
Lord and Miller have quite a bit on their plates, at the moment. In addition to this new project, they’re also working on a series of “Spider-Man” programs for Sony, as well as the new ‘Spider-Verse’ sequel, and whatever other film and TV projects they have on their slate.