Bryan Singer to Direct ‘The Moon is a Harsh Mistress’ Adaptation

Director Bryan Singer (X-Men: Days of Future Past) has been hired by Twentieth Century Fox to direct an adaptation of the 1966 science-fiction novel The Moon is A Harsh Mistress, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The novel follows a lunar colony’s revolt against Earth, similar to the American Revolution of 1776.

Studios have taken a few turns at adapting the Robert A. Heinlein novel. Both Dreamworks and Phoenix Pictures have worked on bringing the project to the big screen over the years, but the rights fell back to Heinlein’s estate after those projects fell through. Heinlein’s novels have had middling success when adapted to television and film, including 1953’s Project Moonbase and 1997’s Starship Troopers.

 The Singer hire makes sense for Fox, which has found success with the director on four X-Men films. The director is currently working with them on a fifth film in the franchise, X-Men Apocalypse. He’s also directing a a musical, Broadway 4D, with Hugh Jackman and Christina Aguilera.