Starship Troopers remake moving ahead

The remake of 1997 cult sci-fi 'Starship Troopers' is moving ahead, with its writers giving a hint of what we might expect from the movie.

News of a remake has been bouncing around since 2012, notably hinting that director Paul Verhoeven's original satire would be given a more 'patriotic' angle.

One half of the team writing it, the 'Thor' and 'X-Men: First Class' scribe Zack Stentz, has now added a bit more flesh to the rumours.

[The most pointless movie sequels in development]

When asked about the progress of the script on Twitter, he replied that the new version will be 'less a satire & more an actual adaptation of the Heinlein novel'.

“'An Officer & A Gentleman' in power armour,” he added.

This could cause concern for fans of the original film.

Many praised it for its satirical edge, which sat at odds with its glossy production and its chiselled, clean-cut cast.

Heinlein's novel was first published in 1959, and was politically controversial for its time.

[Why horror movie remakes are always awful]

It's safe to say that Verhoeven - whose other classic sci-fi actioner 'Total Recall' was remade unremarkably in 2012, while a new take on his 'Robocop' is coming soon - isn't keen on the plans.

Back before the movie was confirmed to be in pre-production, he told The Playlist: “I don’t know if they’re going to do 'Starship Troopers' after the failure of 'Total Recall'.

“Yes, they bought the rights, we know that, but I really thought they made a mistake when they did the remake by making it so serious.

“I’m not so sure [that approach] will work for ['Starship Troopers’] either. I think all of these films are accepted because they don’t take themselves so seriously. There’s a lightness, you believe it, but we also know it’s not true.”

The first film, which saw a group of young marines battling an arachnid race - and starred Casper Van Dien, Neil Patrick Harris and Denise Richards - spawned a host of straight-to-DVD sequels.