Warner Brothers has just revealed that they’ve snagged two of Dan Simmonns four “Hyperion  Cantos” books, which will be made into feature films.  The series consists of four novels, and is most definitely sci-fi.  The first two books in the series, “Hyperion” and “The Fall of Hyperion” are the ones that WB picked up.

THe Hyperion Cantos is set in a very distant future, where mankind has spread itself out far into the galaxy, and all but conquered it with the help of technology.  In the first two books, we follow a group of travellers who are en route to a planent known as Hyperion, which is home to one of the very few remaining mysteries left in the universe.  The mysterious objects are artifacts known as Time Tombs, which can travel through time.  There’s one problem though – they’re guarded by these scary looking creatures known as the Shrike.  Although the books involve a lot of science fiction and technology, that’s not their main focus.  Instead, the true story in all this is the telling of the stories of the travellers on their journey to Hyperion.

According to Hollywood Reporter, Trevor Sands has been hired to adapt the first two books into a single script.  While some have expressed concern that two novels are being crammed into one movie, author Dan Simmonns insists that everything is being done marvelously and top-notch all the way.  On his site, he said:

“It has been optioned by a top-notch studio, is slated to be directed by a top-name director, and already has the involvement of a top-flight movie star. Screenwriters have been attached to the project and a first draft screenplay is expected soon.”

Hmm… I wonder how long til they’ll begin name dropping.  I’m curious to see what big name they’ve already got for this.