Which Spielberg film is based on Ernest Cline's 2011 novel?
Answer
Ready Player One
Steven Spielberg’s film based on Ernest Cline’s 2011 novel is Ready Player One.
The 2018 science-fiction adventure follows Wade Watts, a teenager living in a troubled 2045, who spends much of his life inside the virtual world known as the OASIS. Its creator, James Halliday, hides a contest there: whoever finds three keys and an Easter egg inherits his fortune and control of the OASIS.
The adaptation keeps the novel’s central treasure hunt and its celebration of video-game, film, music, and 1980s pop culture. However, Spielberg and screenwriters Zak Penn and Cline changed major set pieces and story details. The film’s famous opening race, for example, replaces an earlier challenge from the book, and several characters and relationships are reshaped for the screen.
A common mix-up is confusing the source novel’s publication year with the movie’s release year: Cline’s book appeared in 2011, while Spielberg’s film reached theaters in 2018.