At long last, a feature film based on the iconic 1960s sci-fi television series The Outer Limits is moving forward over at MGM. The studio has wanted to turn the property into a movie for more than four years, and now we’re hearing that it has enlisted the help of Sinister scribes Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill to finally bring The Outer Limits to the big screen.
Derrickson, a vocal fan of the series who also recently locked down the directing gig for Marvel’s Doctor Strange, will work with Cargill to adapt one episode of the series in particular. “Demon with a Glass Hand,” written by Harlan Ellison, will be their jumping-off point. It focuses on a man hunted by an alien race who can’t remember anything beyond the previous ten days of his life. Due to his inexplicable computerized hand, the man determines that he comes from the future. “Time travel, alien invasion and genetic manipulation” will also factor into Derrickson and Cargill’s take on the story, though it’s unknown whether the pair plan to keep Ellison’s somber ending.
A photo that Derrickson posted on his official Twitter account more or less confirmed the news:
My screenwriting future has LIMITS: http://t.co/YSLGAj2XCY pic.twitter.com/qgd96byjAn
— Scott Derrickson (@scottderrickson) June 19, 2014
It’s exciting that Derrickson and Cargill are collaborating on The Outer Limits, given their past experience working together to create a supremely creepy atmosphere on Sinister. Though Cargill doesn’t have any other writing credits to his name, Derrickson also wrote The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Devil’s Knot, two movies that (though very different) both worked to build almost agonizing tension. His name is also on this summer’s Deliver Us From Evil, which looks like a very scary time.
No news yet on whether Derrickson will also direct, though MGM is certainly interested in that if the busy helmer’s schedule will allow for it.
You can check out “Devil with a Glass Hand” below and let us know whether you think it’s a solid choice for The Outer Limits movie.
