Ready Player One Offers Even More '80s References In Second Trailer
The new trailer for Stephen Spielberg's Ready Player One has arrived.
On Sunday, Dec. 10, Warner Bros. released the second trailer of the anticipated sci-fi movie, and it offered a deeper look into OASIS, an expansive virtual reality universe. Similar to the initial trailer, the two-minute video embedded below is filled with pop culture references in nearly every frame.
Worlds Collide
Based on the best-selling novel by Ernest Cline, Ready Player One follows Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan), a teenager who escapes his desolate world by plugging in to OASIS. Following the death of tech mogul James Halliday (Mark Rylance), Wade and the million other members of OASIS take part into an Easter Egg hunt that promises half a trillion dollars and, more importantly, total control of the virtual reality game.
The new trailer also introduces the rest of the cast such as fellow player Art3mis (Olivia Cooke) and the movie's villain, Nolan Sorrento (Ben Mendelson). It also offers a look into 2045 Earth to remind the viewers that a rebellion is brewing in the real world.
'80s Nostalgia
The movie stayed faithful to its source. Like the novel, Spielberg's big screen recreation of OASIS is filled with pop culture references from Back to the Future, Street Fighter, Say Anything, Chucky, etc. Even the soundtrack Jump by Van Halen was released in 1984.
While the movie and mostly influenced by the '80s, there are also references to the current pop and video game culture. Lara Croft, who was introduced in the late '90s, and Tracer of Overwatch do not feel out of place alongside Chun-Li. After all, in OASIS, anyone can be who they want to be.
However, fans will not find a lot of references to Spielberg's own filmography in Ready Player One.
"He was very adamant of being the least bit self-referential as possible," Cooke told MTV in an interview from July.
"He felt that less was more of him," T.J. Miller, who plays i-Rok, added.
The Author's Reaction
Ahead of the trailer's premiere, Cline, the author of the novel, described the story of Ready Player One as a cross between Willy Wonka and The Matrix. He also said that he is quite happy with the big screen adaptation.
"If Willy Wonka was a video game designer instead of a candy maker and he held his golden ticket contest inside the worlds greatest video game — that's the essence of what the story is," he told the crowd at his hometown, Austin.
Cline was involved in the production of the movie. He wrote early drafts of the script before it was handed to Zak Penn.
Ready Player One will be released on March 30, 2018.
