Ready Player One (film)

Ready Player One is a 2018 American science fiction action-

Ready Player One
adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a screenplay by
Zak Penn and Ernest Cline. Based on Cline's 2011 novel of the same
name, it stars Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Lena
Waithe, T.J. Miller, Simon Pegg, and Mark Rylance. Set in 2045,
much of humanity uses the virtual world OASIS to escape the real
world. Orphaned teenager Wade Watts (Sheridan) finds clues to a
hidden game that promises OASIS' ownership to the winner, and he
and four allies try to complete it before a corporation run by
businessman Nolan Sorrento (Mendelsohn) can do so.

Development first began in 2010 when Warner Bros. acquired the

rights to the book. In July 2015, Spielberg directed and produced
the film, with casting for the film beginning in September 2015.
Filming began in England in July 2016 and was completed in
September 2016. The visual effects were handled by Industrial Light
& Magic (ILM), Digital Domain, and Territory Studio, with some
pre-visualization done by The Third Floor. As with the novel, several
popular culture references appear throughout the film, with
references to Back to the Future, The Iron Giant, and The Shining
Theatrical release poster by Paul
appearing most prominently.
Shipper
Ready Player One premiered at South by Southwest in Austin, Directed by Steven
Texas on March 11, 2018, and was theatrically released by Warner Spielberg
Bros. Pictures in the United States on March 29, 2018. The film
Produced by Donald De Line
received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed over
$582 million, as well as nominations at the 91st Academy Awards, Kristie Macosko
24th Critics' Choice Awards, and 72nd British Academy Film Krieger
Awards, all for visual effects. Steven
Spielberg
Dan Farah
Contents Screenplay by Zak Penn
Plot Ernest Cline
Cast Based on Ready Player
Production One
Development and casting by Ernest Cline
Filming Starring Tye Sheridan
Visual effects
Olivia Cooke
Music
Ben
Cultural references Mendelsohn
Release T.J. Miller
Home media
Reception Simon Pegg
Box office Mark Rylance
Critical reception Music by Alan Silvestri
Accolades Cinematography Janusz
Future Kamiński
References Edited by Michael Kahn
External links Sarah Broshar
Production Warner Bros.
company Pictures[1]
Plot
Amblin
In 2045, people seek to escape from reality through the virtual Partners[1]
reality entertainment universe called the OASIS (Ontologically Amblin
Anthropocentric Sensory Immersive Simulation), created by James Entertainment[1]
Halliday and Ogden Morrow of Gregarious Games. After Halliday's
Village
death, a pre-recorded message left by his avatar Anorak announces
a game, granting ownership of the OASIS to the first to find the Roadshow
golden Easter egg within it, which gets locked behind a gate Pictures[1]
requiring three keys which players can obtain by accomplishing De Line
three challenges. The contest has lured several "Gunters", or egg Pictures[1]
hunters, and the interest of Nolan Sorrento, the CEO of Innovative
Farah Films &
Online Industries (IOI) who seeks to control the OASIS himself by
inserting intrusive online advertising. IOI uses an army of Management[1]
indentured servants, and employees called "Sixers" to find the egg. Distributed by Warner Bros.
Pictures
Wade Watts' avatar Parzival, an avid Gunter, participates in the first
challenge, an unbeatable race, along with his best friend Aech, and Release date March 11, 2018
Art3mis, a female avatar who Parzival has a crush on. Parzival (South by
regularly visits Halliday's Journals, a simulated archive of Halliday's Southwest)[2]
life and hobbies, run by the Curator. Wade receives the Copper Key March 29, 2018
from Anorak after he wins by driving backward, while Art3mis,
(United States)
Aech, and his friends Daito and Sho, all win the race afterward, later
being collectively named the High-5 on the OASIS' scoreboard. Running time 140 minutes[3]
Country United States
Sorrento asks the mercenary i-R0k to learn Parzival's true identity,
intending to bribe him to win the contest on IOI's behalf. Wade and Language English
Art3mis discover from the Journals that Halliday once dated Budget $155–175
Morrow's wife Karen "Kira" Underwood. Wade and Art3mis visit the million[4][5][6]
Distracted Globe night club to look for clues, where Wade confesses
his love and true name to Art3mis. They survive an IOI raid in Box office $582.9 million[7]
which Art3mis abandons Wade, explaining that her father died in
debt to IOI. i-R0k, who was eavesdropping on their conversation, informs Sorrento of his findings.
Sorrento contacts Wade with his offer. When rejected, Sorrento attempts to kill Wade by bombing his
home, killing his aunt Alice and her boyfriend Rick among others. Art3mis' player Samantha Cook takes
Wade in. Together, they realize the second challenge relates to Halliday's regret of not pursuing a
relationship with Kira. Along with Aech, Daito, and Sho, Parzival and Art3mis search the Overlook Hotel
for clues. There, Art3mis asks Kira to dance and thereby wins the Jade Key. Sorrento's subordinate
F'Nale Zandor storms the Gunters' hideout, taking Samantha to an IOI Loyalty Center to pay off her
father's debt. Wade escapes with the help of the other High-5 users, Helen Harris (Aech), Toshiro
(Daito), and Zhou (Sho) in Helen's truck. Samantha escapes confinement after hacking Sorrento's OASIS
rig.

The third challenge is found in Castle Anorak on Planet Doom, where players must guess Halliday's
favorite Atari 2600 game to earn the Crystal Key. iR0k places a forcefield around the castle using the Orb
of Osuvox, but Art3mis can disable it. The High-5 lead an army of OASIS players against the Sixers.
Sorrento fights back but Aech, Daito, and Art3mis destroy his avatar. Parzival destroys Samantha's
avatar, allowing her to flee IOI while the High-5 picks her up, and reaches the console, but Sorrento
detonates the Cataclyst bomb, wiping out every avatar on Planet Doom including himself. Parzival
survives using an extra life coin given to him earlier by the Curator in a bet. He plays the 1980 game
Adventure, winning the Crystal Key by locating Warren Robinett's Easter egg. He uses the three keys to
enter a treasure room, where Anorak offers him a contract to sign. Parzival recognizes it as the one
Morrow signed when Halliday forced him out of Gregarious Games and refuses to sign it. Anorak
transforms into Halliday, who expresses his regrets in life, handing over the Easter egg.

As Sorrento and Zandor are arrested by the police, who received a recording of his confession from Aech,
Ogden Morrow appears, revealing that he is the Curator. Wade decides to run the OASIS with the High-
5, inviting Morrow to join them as a consultant. After barring the access of IOI's loyalty centers, the
High-5 make the controversial choice to close the OASIS every Tuesday and Thursday, so people can
spend time in the real world.

Cast
Tye Sheridan as Wade Watts / Parzival[8]
Olivia Cooke as Samantha Cook / Art3mis[9]
Ben Mendelsohn as Nolan Sorrento / IOI-655321[10]
Lena Waithe as Helen Harris / Aech[11]
T.J. Miller as i-R0k[12]
Simon Pegg as Ogden Morrow / Curator[13]
Mark Rylance as James Halliday / Anorak the All-Knowing[14]
Philip Zhao as Zhou / Sho[15]
Win Morisaki as Toshiro / Daito[16]
Hannah John-Kamen as F'Nale Zandor[17]
Susan Lynch as Alice[18]
Ralph Ineson as Rick[19]
Perdita Weeks as Karen "Kira" Underwood[20]

Letitia Wright and Mckenna Grace make appearances in the film, with Wright as a rebel who can be seen
at Samantha's safe house, and Grace as a student using the OASIS.[21][22]

Production

Development and casting

Warner Bros. bought the film rights for producers Dan Farah and
Donald De Line in June 2010, one year before the book was
published.[23] Ernest Cline was set to write the script for the film,
which De Line and Farah would produce.[24] Eric Eason rewrote
Cline's script,[25] and Zak Penn was hired to rewrite the previous
drafts by Cline and Eason, along with Village Roadshow Pictures
coming aboard.[26] Steven Spielberg signed on to direct and produce
the film, which Kristie Macosko Krieger also produced, along with
De Line and Farah.[27] Cline and Penn made several revisions while Director Steven Spielberg (far left)
adapting the novel to film. Most of these changes were to eliminate and Ernest Cline with the cast of
scenes that would be uninteresting in a visual format, such as when Ready Player One at San Diego
Wade beats a high score in Pac-Man, or recites all the lines from the Comic-Con. From third of left: Tye
film WarGames.[28][29] Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, T.J. Miller,
and Ben Mendelsohn.
Elle Fanning, Olivia Cooke, and Lola Kirke were the frontrunners for
the role of Art3mis;[30] with Cooke announced as having been cast in
the role by September 2015.[9] In January 2016, Ben Mendelsohn joined the cast.[10] In February 2016,
Tye Sheridan was confirmed to play Wade, after a lengthy casting search for the role.[8] Simon Pegg was
added to the cast in March,[13] with Mark Rylance joining in April.[14] By June, T.J. Miller, Hannah
John-Kamen, and Win Morisaki had also been cast in the film.[12][17][16] In July, Philip Zhao joined the
cast,[15] with Lena Waithe, Ralph Ineson, Mckenna Grace, and Letitia Wright being revealed as
appearing in the film over time prior to the film's release.[11][19][22][21]

Filming

Production was slated to begin in July 2016,[31] but on July 1, 2016, screenwriter Zak Penn confirmed
that the first week of filming had already been completed.[32] In August and September 2016, filming
took place in Birmingham, England, standing in for Columbus, Ohio.[33] Birmingham filming included
on Livery Street in the Jewellery Quarter area of the city, which was used for multiple scenes in the film.
Ludgate Hill Car Park lot on Lionel Street, in which caravan homes were partially built, was also used,
and a planned explosion there caused some local businesses and residents to call emergency services as
no prior notice was given by the production team. Other locations in the city included the former
industrial area of Digbeth, and some of the city's landmarks were erased and replaced with CGI buildings
to create a dystopian future Ohio.[34][35] Outside of Birmingham, filming also took place at Warner Bros.
Studios, Leavesden and at Solaris House, the former Sun Microsystems headquarters in Surrey.[36][33]
Principal photography wrapped on September 27, 2016.[37][38]

Visual effects

Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Digital Domain, and Territory Studio developed the visual effects, with
some pre-visualization done by The Third Floor.[39][40] For three hours three days a week Spielberg met
with ILM, which was in charge of the OASIS segments and produced the bulk of the visual effects shots,
with 900 in total; Spielberg remarked that "this is the most difficult movie I've done since Saving
Private Ryan", as three 3-hour long meetings a week were necessitated to discuss the visual effects.[38]
Visual effects supervisor Roger Guyett stated that the visual effects team would collaborate with
Spielberg and writers Cline and Penn:[41]
 What we did at one point was to have a card for every single character that we considered to
be a "hero" character within the movie, and we put them up on a board and Steven and
everyone else spent hours assigning them to scenes. We'd say, "This is where we want
whoever it would be … Batman, Chun-Li, or whoever." And then we went through the whole
movie doing that. As the scenes developed, we got an understanding of how many characters
we needed.

Part of the film takes place in a virtual space based on the Overlook Hotel in the film The Shining. This
was mostly a digital recreation using high-quality telecine of the original film, allowing new camera
angles and shots that did not appear in the original. Some original footage from The Shining was also
used, with ILM's modifications. Only a few scenes in this sequence involved real actors (such as the
appearance of the Grady twins) and required reproduction of The Shining's physical sets. The Shining
sequence was post-processed with film grain and other aging effects to make the new footage closely
resemble the original.[42] During the production of Ready Player One, The VFX team built the sequence
the Overlook Hotel in the digital realm. Stanley Kubrick's blueprints used to recreate the hotel in the
film.[43] ILM also had to produce digital versions of the film's many cultural references, including the
DeLorean time machine (from the Back to the Future films); the Iron Giant; Chucky; and King Kong,
modeled after the 1933 film version.[44] The Tyrannosaurus rex from Jurassic Park was created from
the base model ILM had created.[44] Digital Domain facilitated pre-visualization (with The Third Floor),
motion capture, and virtual sets, and also created 300 visual effects shots for the primarily live-action
portions of the film. The virtual sets were powered by game engines and were used congruently with the
motion-capture process, with previsualization supervisor Scott Meadows explaining that in real time
Spielberg would "put on a headset and scout the sets and make adjustments." [39][40]

Music
On June 9, 2016, John Williams was initially to form the film's score.[45] However, in July 2017,
Williams left the project, and Alan Silvestri took over scoring duties for the film.[46] The official score
was released by WaterTower Music as a two-CD set on March 30, 2018,[47] with vinyl and cassette
releases projected.[48] At Spielberg's request, Silvestri references his own music from Back to the Future
within the film's score, as well as quoting the music by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind from The
Shining for the film's sequence at the Overlook Hotel.[49]

Ready Player One (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "The Oasis" Alan Silvestri 1:49
2. "Hello, I'm James Halliday" Alan Silvestri 2:01
3. "Why Can't We Go Backwards?" Alan Silvestri 4:18
4. "An Orb Meeting" Alan Silvestri 4:11
5. "Real World Consequences" Alan Silvestri 3:30
6. "Sorrento Makes an Offer" Alan Silvestri 3:34
7. "Welcome to the Rebellion" Alan Silvestri 3:14
8. "High 5 Assembles" Alan Silvestri 4:24
9. "Orb of Osuvox" Alan Silvestri 3:45
10. "Sorrento Punked" Alan Silvestri 3:57
11. "Wade's Broadcast" Alan Silvestri 5:51
12. "Arty on the Inside" Alan Silvestri 2:33
13. "Looking for a Truck" Alan Silvestri 5:36
14. "She Never Left" Alan Silvestri 2:41
 15. "Last Chance" Alan Silvestri 3:20
16. "Get Me Out of This" Alan Silvestri 1:35
17. "Hold on to Something" Alan Silvestri 5:14
18. "This Is Wrong" Alan Silvestri 3:49
19. "What Are You?" Alan Silvestri 3:29
20. "There's Something I Need to Do" Alan Silvestri 5:01
21. "Main Title" Alan Silvestri 2:26
22. "End Credits" Alan Silvestri 8:04
Total length: 1:24:22
Ready Player One: Songs from the Motion Picture
No. Title Performed by Length
1. "I Wanna Be Your Lover" Prince 5:48
2. "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" Tears for Fears 4:12
3. "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" The Temptations 3:49
4. "Stand on It" Bruce Springsteen 3:06
5. "One Way or Another" Blondie 3:27
6. "Can't Hide Love" Earth, Wind & Fire 4:09
7. "Blue Monday" New Order 7:24
8. "Stayin' Alive" Bee Gees 4:45
9. "We're Not Gonna Take It" Twisted Sister 3:38
10. "You Make My Dreams" Hall & Oates 3:11
11. "Pure Imagination (feat. Merethe Soltvedt)" Bryan Nguyen 2:33
Total length: 46:02

Cultural references
Ready Player One pays homage to popular culture from various time
periods, mainly the 1970s and 1980s but also extending to the 1990s,
2000s, and 2010s; reviewers have identified over a hundred references to
films, television shows, music, toys, video games, anime, and comics from
these eras.[50][51][52] Cline did not have any issues with these copyrighted
elements when he published the book, but was aware that securing all
necessary rights would be a major obstacle for a film adaptation. This task
was eventually made easier thanks to Spielberg's reputation in the film
industry.[28][53][54] In the end, Spielberg estimated that they managed to
get about 80% of the copyrighted elements they desired.[28] The production
was not able to secure Close Encounters of the Third Kind from Columbia
Pictures.[55]
Director Steven Spielberg
was reluctant to include In the book there is an adventure module which is not included in the film;
references to his own it was excluded despite Cline being a fan of Tomb of Horrors, but artwork
movies for the film, but of the demon from the module is featured on the back of Aech's van.[56]
would eventually include
references to Back to the Similarly Blade Runner, which was integral to the plot of the book, was
Future and Jurassic Park. shelved as Blade Runner 2049 was in production at the same time as
Ready Player One; as a replacement, the creative team had the players play
through the events of The Shining, which Spielberg was able to secure the
rights to as an homage to his friend Stanley Kubrick.[28] While Cline's original work heavily used the
character of Ultraman, the rights over the character were still under legal dispute, requiring them to
replace Ultraman with the titular robot from The Iron Giant and RX-78-2 Gundam.[57] Spielberg
recognized that his past films were a significant part of the 1980s popular culture cited in the book, and
to avoid being accused of "vanity", he opted to remove many of the references to his own work.[58] Cline
stated that he believed Spielberg wanted to avoid self-references to films he directed, due to the criticism
he received for his film 1941, which lampooned his own previous works Jaws and Duel. Cline said he had
to convince Spielberg to include some iconic elements, such as the DeLorean time machine from Back to
the Future, which Spielberg conceded as the film was one he produced rather than directed.[59] Spielberg
also allowed the Tyrannosaurus rex from his own Jurassic Park to be included.[44] Cline also asked ILM
to include a reference to Last Action Hero, one of Penn's first screenplays, without Penn's knowledge; a
movie marquee in the Manhattan race segment bears the name "Jack Slater", the character Arnold
Schwarzenegger played in that film.[60]

Release
Ready Player One was originally scheduled to be released on December 15, 2017.[61] However, on
February 9, 2016, the film was delayed to March 30, 2018, to avoid competition with Star Wars: The
Last Jedi.[62] In January 2018, it was announced the film's release date had been moved up one day to
March 29, 2018.[63] The film had its world premiere at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas on
March 11, 2018 (as part of the South by Southwest Film Festival).[4]

Warner Bros. distributed the film worldwide, with Village Roadshow Pictures distributing in several
overseas territories.[64] Around the same time the film was released, massively multi-player online game
platform Roblox held an event based on it. The winner of the event was the user r0cu.[65]

Home media

Ready Player One was released on digital copy on July 3, 2018, and on 4K UHD Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D,
Blu-ray, and DVD on July 24, 2018.[66] The film debuted at the top of the NPD VideoScan First Alert
chart, a tracker of combined domestic Blu-Ray and DVD unit sales, for the week ending on July 27,
2018.[67] It retained the No. 1 spot on the chart for the week ending on August 4, 2018.[68]

Reception

Box office

Ready Player One grossed $137.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $445.2 million in other
territories, for a worldwide total of $582.9 million.[7] Deadline Hollywood estimated that the film would
need to gross at least $440 million in order to break even.[69]

In the United States and Canada, Ready Player One was projected to gross $40–50 million from 4,100
theaters over its first four days.[6] It made $12.1 million on its first day, including $3.75 million from
Wednesday night previews. It ended up grossing $41.8 million in its opening weekend (for a four-day
total of $53.7 million).[70]

Critical reception
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 72% and an average
score of 6.83/10 based on 432 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Ready Player One is a
sweetly nostalgic thrill ride that neatly encapsulates Spielberg's strengths while adding another solidly
engrossing adventure to his filmography."[71] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 64
out of 100 based on 55 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[72] Audiences polled by
CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, and those at PostTrak gave the
film an 82% overall positive score and a 65% "definite recommend".[69]

In a review for RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico wrote that the film's "overwhelming" nature and non-
stop action will likely thrill fans of pop culture; while he observed narrative weaknesses, such as a lack of
depth among the supporting characters, he felt that they ultimately do not hinder the film from working
"on the level of technical, blockbuster mastery that Spielberg helped define".[73] Writing for Variety,
Owen Gleiberman called the film a "coruscating explosion of pop-culture eye candy" and found the
sequence based on The Shining to be "irresistible". However, he criticized Spielberg's separation of
fantasy and reality, and he said the film has "more activity than it does layers".[74] IndieWire's Eric Kohn
characterized the film as "an astonishing sci-fi spectacle and a relentless nostalgia trip at once" and
praised both the sequence based on The Shining and Penn's screenplay, particularly with respect to
Mendelsohn's character. Nevertheless, he remarked that the film "drags a bunch in its final third".[75]
Alissa Wilkinson, writing for Vox, praised both the quality and quantity of the world-building. She also
commented on just how dystopian the future portrayed is, where the main characters fight to save the
OASIS and the escape from reality it represents, with arguably less concern for the problems of the real
world.[76] Film and television critic Matt Zoller Seitz praised Ready Player One and noted the
undercurrent of sadness present in the film, stating that "I don't think Spielberg gets enough credit for
making sad films that most people interpret as happy, and complex films that are immediately dismissed
as simple or confused".[77][78][79] Seitz concluded that the film "is a mess, but it is a fascinating and
complex one..."[80] In March 2019, a year after the film's release, Seitz determined that with Ready
Player One's images commenting on capitalism and popular culture, the film was the second-most
"interesting [and] substantive" big-budgeted fantasy in 2018 after Black Panther, admitting that "I still
think about [Ready Player One] a lot, especially concerning the world around me."[81][82]

Monica Castillo was more critical of the film in her review for The Guardian and drew attention to the
absence of character arcs, the lack of resolution for plot holes in the novel, and the bloating of scenes in
the film by trivia.[83] Alonso Duralde, writing for TheWrap, found the usage of pop culture references
lacking, and found his experience watching the film as "feeling bombarded with images, bored by the
lack of an interesting story, and irritated with my own cultural past. I've never been much of a video-
game player, but by the finale, I was ready to 'Leeroy Jenkins!' my way out of the theater".[84]

Accolades
 Date of
Award Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
ceremony
Choice Sci-Fi Movie Ready Player One Nominated
Choice Sci-Fi Movie
Tye Sheridan Nominated
Actor
Teen Choice August 12, [85]
Awards 2018 Choice Sci-Fi Movie
Nominated
Actress
Olivia Cooke
Choice Breakout
Nominated
Movie Star
Critics' Choice January 13, [86]
Best Visual Effects Ready Player One Nominated
Movie Awards 2019
Outstanding Visual Roger Guyett, Jennifer Meislohn,
Effects in a Dave Shirk, Nominated
Photoreal Feature Matthew E. Butler, Neil Corbould
Outstanding Animated Dave Shirk, Brian Cantwell, Jung-
Character Seung Hong and Nominated
in a Photoreal Feature Kim Ooi for "Art3mis"
Outstanding Created Mert Yamak, Stanley Wong, Joana
Environment Garrido and Won
Visual Effects February 5, [87]
in a Photoreal Feature Daniel Gagiu for "Overlook Hotel"
Society Awards 2019
Daniele Bigi, Edmund Kolloen,
Outstanding Virtual
Mathieu Vig and
Cinematography Won
Jean-Baptiste Noyau for "New York
in a Photoreal Project
Race"
Outstanding Model in Giuseppe Laterza, Kim Lindqvist,
a Mauro Giacomazzo
Nominated
Photoreal or Animated and William Gallyo for "DeLorean
Project DMC-12"
February 17, [88]
Satellite Awards Best Visual Effects Ready Player One Nominated
2019
Matthew E. Butler, Grady Cofer,
February 10, Best Special Visual [89]
BAFTA Awards Roger Guyett, Nominated
2019 Effects
Dave Shirk
Academy February 24, Roger Guyett, Grady Cofer, Matthew [90]
Best Visual Effects Nominated
Awards 2019 E. Butler and Dave Shirk
Best Science Fiction
Ready Player One Won
Film
September Best Director Steven Spielberg Nominated [91]
Saturn Awards
13, 2019
Best Music Alan Silvestri Nominated
Best Special Effects Ready Player One Nominated

Future
When asked about a sequel to the film, Cline stated: "I think there's a good chance that, if this one does
well, Warner Bros. will want to make a sequel. I don't know if Steven [Spielberg] would want to dive back
in, because he would know what he is getting into. He's said that it's the third-hardest film he's made,
out of dozens and dozens of movies".[92][93] Co-star Olivia Cooke, and presumably the rest of the cast, is
"contracted to sequels".[94] Cline wrote a book sequel, titled Ready Player Two, which was released on
November 24, 2020.[95] On December 22, 2020, Cline announced that a sequel was in the early stages of
development.[96]

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External links
Official website (https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/ready-player-one)
Ready Player One (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1677720/) on IMDb
Ready Player One (https://www.allmovie.com/movie/v628720) at AllMovie

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non-profit organization.
Ready Player One
Ready Player One is a 2011 science fiction novel, and the debut
novel of American author Ernest Cline. The story, set in a dystopia in Ready Player One
2045, follows protagonist Wade Watts on his search for an Easter
egg in a worldwide virtual reality game, the discovery of which would
lead him to inherit the game creator's fortune. Cline sold the rights
to publish the novel in June 2010, in a bidding war to the Crown
Publishing Group (a division of Random House).[1] The book was
published on August 16, 2011.[2] An audiobook was released the
same day; it was narrated by Wil Wheaton, who was mentioned
briefly in one of the chapters.[3][4]Ch. 20 In 2012, the book received
an Alex Award from the Young Adult Library Services Association
division of the American Library Association[5] and won the 2011
Prometheus Award.[6] A film adaptation, screenwritten by Cline and
Zak Penn and directed by Steven Spielberg, was released on March
29, 2018. A sequel, Ready Player Two, was released on November
24, 2020.[7]

Contents First edition cover

Synopsis Author Ernest Cline
Setting
Audio read by Wil Wheaton
Plot
Country United States
Characters
Language English
Reception
Subject Video games,
Continuation Virtual Reality
Short story
Genre LitRPG, Science
Sequel novel
Fiction, Pop Culture
In other media Fiction, Dystopian
Easter egg hunt promotion
Publisher Crown Publishing
Film adaptation
Group
See also Publication August 16, 2011
Notes date

References Media type Print (hardcover

and paperback), e-
External links
book, audiobook
Pages 374
Synopsis ISBN 978-1524763282
Followed by Ready Player Two
Setting

In the year 2045, the world is gripped by an energy crisis and global warming, causing widespread social
problems and economic stagnation. The primary escape for most people is a virtual universe called the
OASIS, which is accessed with a visor and haptic gloves. It functions both as an MMORPG and as a
virtual society, with its currency being the most stable currency in the world. It was created by James
Halliday, who has recently died. His will left a series of clues towards an Easter Egg, hidden behind a
series of gates unlocked with keys within the OASIS that would grant whoever found it both his fortune
and control of the OASIS itself. This has led to an intense interest in all aspects of 1980s pop culture,
which Halliday made clear would be essential to finding his egg.

Plot

Wade Watts is a teenager who lives in a slum with his aunt. He attends school within the OASIS but lacks
the virtual currency or XP levels to travel to other locations. He is a "gunter" (an egg hunter) who spends
all his spare time researching films, songs, TV series, and videogames from the 1980s and '90s to aid his
hunt. The hunt has been going on for five years, yet no one has been able to find the first key. Then
Wade, who goes by the avatar name Parzival, stumbles upon the possibility that the first clue (known for
containing a Dungeons & Dragons reference) refers to the virtual school planet Ludus (on which he is
stuck) and after defeating an NPC character at Joust, is given a key which unlocks the first gate and a
clue about where to find it and how to access it (by beating the video game Dungeons of Daggorath in a
recreation of Halliday's own bedroom). This places him in a simulation of the film WarGames in which
he has to recreate the lines of the lead character. After clearing the gate, he is awarded points and his
avatar's name appears on the previously empty scoreboard.

His avatar becomes famous within the OASIS, as does his friend Aech and another gunter named
Art3mis who clear the gate shortly after him. He takes advantage of his fame, endorsing virtual products
for credits, and develops a tentative relationship with Art3mis. He is approached by Nolan Sorrento
Innovative Online Industries (IOI) who want to control the OASIS and after he refuses, they attempt to
assassinate him.

The hunt for the egg continues and more keys are discovered and gates are cleared (in a similar fashion
to the first ones), with two Japanese hunters named Daito and Shoto gaining points. However, Wade
loses after asking Art3mis out on a date at the Distracted Globe virtual nightclub on planet Neonoir and
admits his love for her causing Art3mis to stop speaking to him, becoming increasingly isolated. Art3mis
opens the second gate and obtains the Jade key, followed by Aech who also gives Parzival a hint about its
location. IOI who had been monitoring Art3mis and Aech's whereabouts using OASIS items also
discover its location. Shortly after, Parzival, Daito, and Shoto also reach the gate's location, but Daito is
killed by IOI in real life while helping Shoto open the second gate.

Eventually, the final gate is discovered by IOI who are unable to open it, having missed a previous clue
saying that the gate cannot be opened by a single avatar, but by three instead. They barricade the
location with an impenetrable force field, so Wade infiltrates the real-world headquarters of IOI,
accesses their databases, and leaves a booby trap to bring down the force field from within. He enlists the
help of all the gunters in the OASIS to launch a coordinated assault on the corporate forces, while he,
Aech and Art3mis activate the final gate. During the battle, a doomsday device is activated killing every
avatar in the sector, but Parzival had unknowingly gained an extra life earlier in his quest and survives.
While the sector is empty he solves the final puzzle, clears the gate and claims the egg. He thus gains
control of the OASIS, including the ability to switch it off.

In real life, Sorrento is arrested for his crime while Parzival and Art3mis finally meet in person and kiss.
Characters
Wade Owen Watts a.k.a. Parzival: The viewpoint character, an orphan living with his aunt in the
"stacks" surrounding metropolitan Oklahoma City. Wade names his OASIS character Parzival after
the Arthurian knight involved in the quest for the holy grail. Wade's character was based on a mix of
Cline as well as his geek friends.[8]
James Donovan Halliday a.k.a. Anorak: The creator of OASIS. His avatar's name is based on a
British slang term for an obsessive geek. His character was initially inspired by Willy Wonka who
Cline described as a "rich eccentric holding a fantastic contest". Cline used the personalities of
Howard Hughes and Richard Garriott, and placed Halliday's birth year around the same as his own
so that his pop culture interests would coincide with Cline's "and the other middle-aged uber-geeks I
know".[8][9]
Aech (pronounced like the letter HCh. 33): Wade's best friend, fellow gunter, and rival in the quest to
find the egg. Although Aech's avatar is an athletic white heterosexual male,p. 38-39 Aech is played by
an African-American lesbian named Helen Harris, who grew up in Atlanta, Georgia and is about the
same age as Wade.Ch. 33 Aech is based partly on Cline's friend Harry Knowles as well as himself
and other geeks, both men and women.[8]
Art3mis: A famous female gunter and blogger; Real name: Samantha Cook. She chose her avatar's
name from the Greek goddess of the hunt.[a] Like other characters, Cline based Art3mis on himself
and other geeks, both men, and women.[8]
Ogden "Og" Morrow a.k.a. The Great and Powerful Og: Co-creator of the OASIS and best friend of
James Halliday. His appearance and personality are described in the book as being "a cross
between Albert Einstein and Santa Claus". Ogden's character and relationship with Halliday were
inspired by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, with Morrow being more like Jobs as a "charismatic tech
leader",[9][10] while his avatar's name is inspired by the Wizard of Oz.
Daito: One of the two Japanese gunters who rise to the top of the scoreboard early on in the hunt,
working in a team with his "brother" Shoto. He took his avatar's name from the name of the long
sword in a daisho set, which is a katana on its own. They are both based on otaku: Japanese geeks
who enjoy movies and anime, as well as hikikomori: people who live as recluses inside their family's
homes, referred to in the book as "the Missing Millions".[8] Daito's real name is revealed to be Toshiro
Yoshiaki after he is killed by the IOI.
Shoto: The second and younger of the two Japanese gunters working as a team in their quest for the
egg.p. 129 He took his avatar's name from the name of the shorter sword of a daisho set, which is a
wakizashi on its own. Shoto's real name is Akihide Karatsu.p. 292
Nolan Sorrento a.k.a. IOI-655321: The head of operations at Innovative Online Industries (IOI), the
multinational corporation that serves as an Internet service provider for most of the world. Cline said
that he named Sorrento after Nolan Bushnell, founder of the video game company Atari and said
"Not that I think Nolan is a bad guy or anything. It’s meant as a subtle tribute!"[11]

Reception
Ready Player One was a New York Times bestseller.[12][13][14] Among those praising the book were
Entertainment Weekly, The Boston Globe, The A.V. Club, CNN.com, io9, and Boing Boing. USA Today
wrote that the novel "undoubtedly qualifies Cline as the hottest geek on the planet right now."[15] NPR
said that the book was "ridiculously fun and large-hearted". Cline "takes a far-out premise and engages
the reader instantly" with a "deeply felt narrative [that] makes it almost impossible to stop turning the
pages."[16] Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote that "The book gets off to a witty start" but noted
that it lacks at least one dimension, stating that gaming had overwhelmed everything else about this
book.[17] Rebecca Serle of HuffPost described the book as "the grown-up's Harry Potter" and that it "has
it all – nostalgia, trivia, adventure, romance, heart and, dare I say it, some very fascinating social
commentary."[18]

The book has also polarized readers. Nick Shager, writing for The Daily Beast, offered a scathing review
that criticized the book's narrative style by stating "It’s... a terribly written piece of adolescent fantasy
that, at heart, exemplifies everything wrong and repellent about modern nerd culture" and challenged its
coming-of-age premise by calling it "a stunted-adolescent story". Regarding the abundance of pop
culture references, Shager called the book "an unbearable celebration of nostalgic juvenilia". He
summarized his argument against the book by stating "It’s a lionization of immature things (and
immaturity) as an end to itself, rather than as the building blocks of more mature – and worthwhile –
creations". Shager also lamented the book's "Peter Pan-ish infatuation with childishness, which comes
coated in a stench of stale Doritos, Jolt Cola and lowbrow smugness".[19]

Michael J. Nelson's and Conor Lastowka's podcast series 372 Pages We'll Never Get Back dissected the
book, criticizing it for defective worldbuilding, repetitive and excessive pop culture references in place of
descriptive writing, and weak plot.[20] The book has been translated into over 20 languages.[21] In an
interview with Fortune, Cline said that his book had inspired designers at companies such as Oculus VR
which recommended the book for their new employees.[22][23] Oculus has also invited Cline several
times to sign books and demo hardware.[24] The Ready Player One: Oasis beta, developed by Directive
Games Limited, was released on March 23, 2018 alongside the Steven Spielberg movie and consists of
four experiences made for virtual reality headsets.[25] The game is currently available for free on Steam
and Viveport.

In 2018, the book garnered negative reception from critics who believed it pandered too much on the
male demographic, which many online publications later refuted. Writer Chris Isaac of Tor disagreed
with the criticisms, stating "So, if you don’t like Ready Player One and have criticisms about it, that’s
totally understandable" while adding "I’ll certainly point out the issues I have with his stories, but I’m
not going to delight in mocking his work or hoping for his failure like many did with Meyer and
Twilight."[26] Constance Grady of Vox described in an article about how Gamergate have changed the
perception of the book over time: "For readers in Cline’s target demographic in 2011, that message felt
empowering. For readers who weren’t, it felt like a harmless piece of affirmation meant for someone else.
Everyone deserves a silly escapist fantasy, right?" to "But in this world [...] only things that affect straight
white dudes really matter". [27]

Continuation

Short story

Lacero, a fan-fiction short story by Andy Weir, was published online in 2014,[28] and later included in
the 2016 limited edition of Ready Player One published by Subterranean Press.[29]

It functions as a precursor to the main novel, and is considered canonical to the Ready Player One
fictional universe.[30][31]

Sequel novel
As early as 2015, Cline has been reported to be working on a sequel to Ready Player One from
screenwriter Zak Penn.[32] Cline confirmed the sequel was in progress by December 2017, and would
have a different story-line involving all of the characters, while still exploring pop culture references like
the first book.[33] Penguin House released the sequel, Ready Player Two on November 24, 2020. The
plot follows Wade as he embarks on a new quest after discovering a new technology developed by
Halliday. For the second week of December 6 that year, it was number one on Amazon's fiction chart. [34]

In other media

Easter egg hunt promotion

Ten months after the first edition's release, Cline revealed on his blog that Ready Player One itself
contained an elaborately hidden Easter egg. This clue would form the first part of a series of staged video
gaming tests, similar to the plot of the novel. Cline also revealed that the competition's grand prize would
be a DeLorean.[35] The Easter egg was a URL hidden in the book for anoraksalmanac.com (http://anora
ksalmanac.com/). This was the first stage of the contest where the 2011 Atari 2600 game The Stacks by
developers Mike Mika & Kevin Wilson[36] was featured.[37] The game Ultimate Collector: Garage Sale
by Austin-based developer Portalarium was featured in the second stage of the contest.[38][39] The final
stage of the contest was announced on August 1, 2012, and was to set a world record on one of several
classic arcade or Atari 2600 games. This was completed on August 9, 2012 by Craig Queen, who set a
new world record in Joust. He was awarded the DeLorean on the TV series X-Play.[40]

Film adaptation

The film rights were purchased by Warner Bros. on the same day Cline finalized his publishing deal with
Random House, one year prior to the novel's publication. Dan Farah brought the project into the studio
and produced it with Donald De Line. Cline adapted his novel into a screenplay.[41] Over the years, Eric
Eason and Zak Penn assisted Cline with rewrites.[42]

Steven Spielberg signed on to direct in March 2015.[43] Spielberg and Kristie Macosko Krieger of Amblin
Partners also joined Deline and Farah as producers. Warner Bros. initially announced a release date of
December 15, 2017.[44] On February 9, 2016, the release date was pushed back to March 30, 2018, to
avoid competition with Star Wars: The Last Jedi.[45] The movie began production in the spring of 2016
and was filmed in both the United States and the United Kingdom.

On June 9, 2016, Variety stated that Spielberg's regular collaborator John Williams was planning on
composing the film's score.[46] However, scheduling conflicts with another Spielberg film, The Post, led
to Spielberg signing Alan Silvestri for the score.

The film stars Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Lena Waithe, T. J. Miller, Simon Pegg, and
Mark Rylance with Philip Zao, Win Morisaki, and Hannah John-Kamen in supporting roles. It
premiered at South by Southwest on March 11, 2018, and was theatrically released by Warner Bros. in
the United States on March 29, 2018. It received generally positive reviews from critics who praised its
visuals and brisk pacing, the performances of Sheridan and Rylance, and noted it as an improvement on
the book. This film received criticism for its lack of character development and its "achingly regressive"
view of pop culture fans.[47][48]

See also
 Virtual reality in fiction
LitRPG
Escapist Dream - a similar book that deals with pop cultural references.

Notes
a. Art3mis chose the leet spelling as her username because the original spelling was already taken.p. 93
^ The terms "Ch.." and "p." are shortened forms for chapter and page, and refer to chapters and
pages in the Ready Player One novel in its first American edition.

References
1. [1] (http://www.fusedfilm.com/2010/06/cool-novel-ready-player-one-gets-publishing-rights-and-movie-
deal-with-warner-bros/) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20101121204151/http://www.fusedfil
m.com/2010/06/cool-novel-ready-player-one-gets-publishing-rights-and-movie-deal-with-warner-bro
s/) November 21, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
2. "Ready Player One by Ernest Cline" (http://www.randomhouse.com/book/209887/ready-player-one-b
y-ernest-cline/9780307887436/). Random House Publishers. 2011. Retrieved September 12, 2011.
3. McWeeny, Drew (August 16, 2011). "Review: 'Ready Player One' is the geek book event of the year:
Ernie Cline's first novel offers nostalgia, the future, and a gamer's dream" (http://www.hitfix.com/blog
s/motion-captured/posts/review-ready-player-one-is-the-geek-book-event-of-the-year). HitFix.
4. "You want to accept Anorak's Invitation. Trust me. -" (http://wilwheaton.net/2011/08/you-want-to-acce
pt-anoraks-invitation-trust-me/). wilwheaton.net. August 15, 2011. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
5. "YALSA's Alex Awards" (http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/alex). American Library Association.
2012. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
6. Libertarian Futurist Society. "PROMETHEUS AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED" (http://lfs.org/releas
es/2012Winners.shtml). Retrieved July 13, 2012.
7. Couch, Aaron (July 8, 2020). " 'Ready Player One' Book Sequel Sets November Publishing Date" (htt
ps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/ready-player-two-sets-november-publishing-date-13022
84). The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
8. Sims, Tony (June 22, 2011). "A Few Minutes With Fanboys Writer Ernest Cline on Ready Player
One" (http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2011/06/a-few-minutes-with-fanboys-writer-ernest-cline-on-r
eady-player-one/). Wired.
9. "How Lord British Inspired Anorak | Ernie's Blog" (http://www.ernestcline.com/blog/2011/10/19/how-lo
rd-british-inspired-anorak/). Ernestcline.com. October 19, 2011. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
10. Bilton, Nick. "One on One: Ernest Cline, author of 'Ready Player One' " (https://bits.blogs.nytimes.co
m/2012/08/22/one-on-one-ernest-cline-author-of-ready-player-one/?_r=0). nytimes.com. Retrieved
February 14, 2017.
11. "The Geek Genius Behind Ready Player One: An Interview With Ernest Cline" (http://www.warpzone
d.com/2011/09/the-geek-genius-behind-ready-player-one-an-interview-with-ernest-cline/).
warpzoned.com. September 23, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2017.
12. "Best Sellers: Hardcover Fiction: Sunday, September 11th 2011" (https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpa
ge.html). September 11, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2017 – via NYTimes.com.
13. "Paperback Trade Fiction Books - Best Sellers - July 1, 2012 - The New York Times" (https://www.nyt
imes.com/books/best-sellers/2012/07/01/trade-fiction-paperback/). nytimes.com. Retrieved
March 17, 2017.
14. "Paperback Trade Fiction Books - Best Sellers - December 25, 2016 - The New York Times" (https://
www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2016/12/25/trade-fiction-paperback/). nytimes.com. Retrieved
March 17, 2017.
15. "Most Popular E-mail Newsletter" (https://www.usatoday.com/life/books/reviews/2011-09-05-ready-pl
ayer-one-ernest-cline_n.htm). USA Today. August 19, 2011.
16. Schaub, Michael (August 22, 2011). " 'Player One': A Winning, Geeked-Out Page-Turner" (https://ww
w.npr.org/2011/08/22/139760489/player-one-a-winning-geeked-out-page-turner). NPR. Retrieved
July 7, 2012.
17. Maslin, Janet (August 14, 2011). " 'Ready Player One' by Ernest Cline – Review" (https://www.nytime
s.com/2011/08/15/books/ready-player-one-by-ernest-cline-review.html). The New York Times.
18. Author, Rebecca Serle; Mine, When You Were; Falling, The Edge of; Love, Famous in (August 17,
2011). " 'Ready Player One': An Interview with Author Ernest Cline" (https://www.huffingtonpost.com/r
ebecca-serle/ready-player-one-ernest-cline-interview_b_929300.html). HuffPost. Retrieved
February 14, 2017.
19. Shager, Nick. "How is Steven Spielberg going to make a great movie out of this god-awful book?" (ht
tps://www.thedailybeast.com/how-is-steven-spielberg-going-to-make-a-great-movie-out-of-this-god-a
wful-book?ref=scroll). The Daily Beast. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
20. Vanderbilt, Mike. "Exclusive: It's game over when RiffTrax alums take on Ernest Cline and Ready
Player One" (https://news.avclub.com/exclusive-its-game-over-when-rifftrax-alums-take-on-er-18242
13881). News.
21. "Ready Player One" (http://www.ernestcline.com/books/rpo/). ernestcline.com. Retrieved February 7,
2017.
22. "How Ready Player One author Ernest Cline inspired Oculus VR" (http://fortune.com/2015/07/10/rea
dy-player-one-vr/). fortune.com. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
23. Brogan, Jacob (July 14, 2015). " "Imagining the Future Is Dangerous" " (http://www.slate.com/articles/
technology/future_tense/2015/07/an_interview_with_ernest_cline_author_of_ready_player_one_and
_armada.html). Retrieved February 14, 2017 – via Slate.
24. "Facebook gives its Oculus employees a dystopian sci-fi book to get them excited about building the
future" (http://www.businessinsider.com/oculus-gives-all-its-employees-ready-player-one-2016-7).
businessinsider.com. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
25. "Ready Player One's Oasis Beta Launches On Oculus Rift" (https://uploadvr.com/ready-player-ones-
oasis-beta-launches-oculus-rift/). UploadVR. April 17, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
26. Isaac, Chris. "Why So Much Backlash? Ready Player One is Basically Twilight for Nerds" (https://ww
w.tor.com/2018/03/12/why-so-much-backlash-ready-player-one-is-basically-twilight-for-nerds/). Tor.
March 12, 2020
27. Grady, Constance. "The Ready Player One backlash, explained" (https://www.vox.com/culture/2018/
3/26/17148350/ready-player-one-book-backlash-controversy-gamergate-explained). Vox. March 26,
2020
28. "Lacero" (http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/lacero.html). galactanet.com. Retrieved February 7,
2017.
29. "Ready Player One Limited Edition" (https://subterraneanpress.com/cline-ready-player-one).
Retrieved July 22, 2020.
30. Brock Wilbur (March 28, 2016). "How 'The Martian' Impacted the 'Ready Player One' Movie" (https://
www.inverse.com/article/13417-how-the-martian-impacted-the-ready-player-one-movie). INverse.
31. Lussier, Germain. "The Author of The Martian Wrote Ready Player One Fan Fiction, and Now It's
Canon" (https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-author-of-the-martian-wrote-ready-player-one-fan-fi-176622890
9). gizmodo.com. Retrieved April 16, 2018.
32. "Ernie Cline Reportedly Writing Ready Player One Sequel" (https://www.slashfilm.com/ernie-cline-re
ady-player-one-sequel/). slashfilm.com. January 16, 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
33. "Ready Player One sequel: Everything you need to know" (http://www.digitalspy.com/movies/ready-pl
ayer-one/feature/a866085/ready-player-2-cast-trailer-book-release-date-plot/). Digital Spy.
September 13, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
34. https://www.amazon.com/charts/2020-12-06/mostsold/fiction/ref=dp_chrtbg_dbs_1
35. "Three Hidden Keys Open Three Secret Gates | Ernie's Blog" (http://www.ernestcline.com/blog/2012/
06/05/three-hidden-keys-open-three-secret-gates/). Ernestcline.com. June 5, 2012. Retrieved July 7,
2012.
36. "Stacks, The Play online - The Stacks (Atari 2600) :: DJ OldGames" (http://www.oldgames.sk/en/ga
me/stacks/download/8076/). www.oldgames.sk. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
37. "Contest Winners Level Up In The Ready Player One Easter Egg Hunt | Giant Freakin RobotGiant
Freakin Robot" (http://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/scifi/contest-winners-level-ready-player-easter-egg
-hunt.html). www.giantfreakinrobot.com. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
38. "Contest Winners Level Up In The Ready Player One Easter Egg Hunt" (http://www.giantfreakinrobo
t.com/scifi/contest-winners-level-ready-player-easter-egg-hunt.html). Giant Freakin Robot.
39. "For Ernest Cline, author of Ready Player One, success is measured in DeLoreans and geeked-out
fans" (https://venturebeat.com/2012/08/01/ready-player-one-interview/). venturebeat.com. Retrieved
February 7, 2017.
40. "Ready Player —One Author Ernest Cline Gives Away a DeLorean on X-Play" (https://web.archive.or
g/web/20130114030616/http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/727453/ready-player-one-author-ern
est-cline-gives-away-a-delorean-on-x-play/). g4tv.com. August 30, 2012. Archived from the original
(http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/727453/ready-player-one-author-ernest-cline-gives-away-a-d
elorean-on-x-play/) on January 14, 2013. Retrieved September 1, 2012.
41. Fleming, Michael (June 18, 2010). "Warner Bros and De Line Pictures Win Book Auction For 'Ready
Player One' " (https://deadline.com/2010/06/warner-bros-and-de-line-pictures-win-book-auction-for-re
ady-player-one-48086/). Deadline.com. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
42. Sneider, Jeff (January 13, 2010). "Eason to rewrite 'Player' script" (https://variety.com/2012/film/new
s/eason-to-rewrite-player-script-1118048568). Variety. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
43. Busch, Anita (March 25, 2015). "Steven Spielberg To Direct Sci-Fi Cult Favorite 'Ready Player One';
Back At Warner Bros" (https://deadline.com/2015/03/ready-player-one-movie-steven-spielberg-ernes
t-cline-warner-bros-1201398299/). Deadline.com. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
44. Zumberge, Marianne. "Steven Spielberg's 'Ready Player One' Slated for 2017 Release" (https://varie
ty.com/2015/film/news/steven-spielbergs-ready-player-one-release-december-2017-1201558130/).
45. Lang, Brent (February 9, 2016). "Steven Spielberg's 'Ready Player One' Pushed Back to Avoid 'Star
Wars: Episode VIII' " (https://variety.com/2016/film/news/ready-player-one-steven-spielberg-star-wars
-1201701175/). Variety. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
46. Burlingame, Jon (June 9, 2016). "AFI Honoree John Williams Looks Back on Six Decades of Iconic
Themes" (https://variety.com/2016/film/spotlight/john-williams-afi-1201792072-1201792072/).
Variety. Retrieved June 9, 2016.
47. Jagneaux, David (March 13, 2018). "Ready Player One Movie Review Roundup: Another Spielberg
Classic?" (https://uploadvr.com/ready-player-one-movie-review-roundup-another-spielberg-classic/).
UploadVR. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
48. Casey, Henry T. (March 14, 2018). "Ready Player One Review Roundup: Pretty, Flawed" (https://ww
w.tomsguide.com/us/ready-player-one-review-roundup,news-26776.html). Tom’s Guide. Retrieved
March 26, 2018.

External links
Ready Player One (http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?1297291) title listing at the Internet
Speculative Fiction Database
Official Tumblr (http://readyplayerone.com/)
 Excerpts (https://www.scribd.com/doc/58391566/Ready-Player-One-by-Ernest-Cline-Excerpt-2) from
the book from Scribd

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ready_Player_One&oldid=999147861"

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non-profit organization.
Ernest Cline
Ernest Christy Cline (born March 29, 1972) is an American
science fiction novelist, slam poet, and screenwriter. He wrote the Ernest Cline
novels Ready Player One, Armada, and Ready Player Two and co-
wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation of Ready Player One,
directed by Steven Spielberg.

Contents
Life and career
Spoken word
Books
Personal life
Bibliography
Novels
Short stories
Screenplays
Cline at the 2017 San Diego Comic-
Poetry Con
Adaptations Born Ernest Christy
References Cline[1]
March 29, 1972[1]
External links
Ashland, Ohio,
U.S.[2]

Life and career Occupation Novelist,

screenwriter, artist,
poet
Cline was born and raised in Ashland, Ohio, the son of Ernest
Christy Cline and Faye Imogene (née Williams) Cline.[1][3] As a Spouse Cristin O'Keefe
Aptowicz
youth in the 1970s and 1980s, Cline was "addicted to video games (m. after 2016)
and movies," especially Star Wars, the movies of John Hughes, and
the tabletop roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons.[3] He worked Website
in information technology in his twenties and worked on www.ernestcline.com (http://www.er
screenwriting during his spare time.[3] nestcline.com/)

Spoken word

From 1997 to 2001, Cline performed his original work at Austin Poetry Slam venues. He was the Austin
Poetry Slam Champ in 1998 and 2001 and competed on the Austin Poetry Slam Teams at the 1998
Austin National Poetry Slam and the 2001 Seattle National Poetry Slam.[4][5] His most popular spoken-
word pieces include "Dance, Monkeys, Dance," "Nerd Porn Auteur," and "When I Was a Kid."[6][7] Cline
subsequently reworked "Dance Monkeys Dance" into a faux educational filmstrip, which became a
popular viral video that has now been translated into 29 different languages.
In 2001, Cline self-published a chapbook collection of his spoken-word writing, The Importance of Being
Ernest, and released an album, The Geek Wants Out. In fall 2013 Write Bloody Publishing published a
new edition of The Importance of Being Ernest with new cover art by Gary Musgrave and new interior
illustrations by Len Peralta.

Books

In June 2010, Cline sold his first novel, Ready Player One, a book that takes place in a dystopian vision
of the 2040s. The book is about a kid who tries to solve the keys to find a billionaire's wealth in a sort of
competition. The book was sold in a bidding war to the Crown Publishing Group (a division of Random
House).[8] The film rights to the novel were sold the following day, to Warner Bros., with Cline co-
writing the screenplay.[9] Ten months later, with the hardcover release coinciding with the paperback
release, Cline revealed on his blog that both the paperback and hardcover editions of Ready Player One
contain an elaborately hidden Easter egg. This clue formed the first part of a series of staged video
gaming tests, similar to the plot of the novel. Cline also revealed that the competition's grand prize would
be a 1981 DeLorean. The prize was awarded in 2012.[10] The paperback is currently in its 17th printing.

Cline's second novel, Armada, was released on July 14, 2015, by Crown Publishing Group.[11] In
December 2015 the film rights to Armada were sold to Universal Pictures for a seven-figure sum.[12]

The third novel, Ready Player Two was announced in August 2015[13] and published in November 2020
as a sequel to Ready Player One.[14] It was released on November 24, 2020.[15]

Personal life

In 2016, he married poet/nonfiction writer Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz, whom he met at the 1998 National
Poetry Slam.[16]

Cline's all-time favorite video game is Black Tiger,[17] which figures prominently in the plot of Ready
Player One.

Bibliography

Novels

Ready Player One series:

1. Ready Player One (2011)

2. Ready Player Two (2020)[18][19]

Standalone:

Armada (2015)

Short stories
 "The Omnibot Incident" (2014), short story in Robot Uprisings, anthology edited by Daniel H. Wilson
and John Joseph Adams.[20]

Screenplays
Fanboys (2009) – with Adam F. Goldberg
Red vs. Blue episode "Mr. Red vs. Mr. Blue" (2016)
Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode "At the Earth's Core" (2017) – with fifteen other writers
Ready Player One (2018) – with Zak Penn

Poetry
The Importance of Being Ernest (2013)[21]

Adaptations
Ready Player One (2018), film directed by Steven Spielberg, based on novel Ready Player One

References
1. "Ernest Christy Cline (b. 1972)" (https://archive.is/20150423065405/http://birth-records.mooseroots.c
om/l/9477528/Ernest-Christy-Cline). birth-records.mooseroots.com. Archived from the original (http://
birth-records.mooseroots.com/l/9477528/Ernest-Christy-Cline) on April 23, 2015. Retrieved
September 9, 2017.
2. John R. Alden. "Ernest Cline's smart 'Ready Player One' makes cybernerds fun" (http://www.clevelan
d.com/books/index.ssf/2011/08/ernest_clines_smart_ready_play.html), Cleveland Plain Dealer,
August 22, 2011.
3. Hamburger, Ellis (March 11, 2014). "Ernest Cline is the luckiest geek alive" (https://www.theverge.co
m/2014/3/11/5492708/ernest-cline-is-the-luckiest-geek-alive-interview). The Verge. Retrieved
October 27, 2019.
4. "Postscripts: Bloomin' Poets – Books" (http://www.austinchronicle.com/books/1998-06-05/523584/).
The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
5. Smith, Clay (July 13, 2001). "Postscripts" (http://www.austinchronicle.com/books/2001-07-
13/82307/). The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
6. Wheaton, Wil (August 15, 2011). "You want to accept Anorak's Invitation. Trust me" (https://wilwheat
on.net/2011/08/you-want-to-accept-anoraks-invitation-trust-me/). Wilwheaton.net. Retrieved
February 24, 2014.
7. Whittaker, Richard (October 27, 2012). "Wizard World: Wil Wheaton Versus the Burrito" (http://www.a
ustinchronicle.com/daily/screens/2012-10-27/wil-wheaton-versus-the-buritto/). The Austin Chronicle.
Retrieved February 24, 2014.
8. Coll, Kevin (June 21, 2010) Cool Novel Ready Player One Gets Publishing Rights and Movie Deal (h
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20101121204151/http://www.fusedfilm.com/2010/06/cool-novel-ready-pla
yer-one-gets-publishing-rights-and-movie-deal-with-warner-bros/). fusedfilm.com
9. Fleming, Mike (June 18, 2010). "Deadline Hollywood – Warner Bros and De Line Pictures Win Book
Auction For Ready Player One" (https://www.deadline.com/2010/06/warner-bros-and-de-line-pictures
-win-book-auction-for-ready-player-one/). Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
10. "Ready Player One DeLorean prize awarded" (https://boingboing.net/2012/08/31/ready-player-one-d
elorean.html). Boing Boing. August 31, 2012.
11. "A Long Overdue Update" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160118213030/http://www.ernestcline.co
m/blog/2015/02/11/a-long-overdue-update/). Ernie's Blog. Archived from the original (http://www.erne
stcline.com/blog/2015/02/11/a-long-overdue-update/) on January 18, 2016. Retrieved February 15,
2015.
12. "Universal sets sail with 'Armada' " (https://variety.com/2012/film/news/universal-sets-sail-with-armad
a-1118063261/). Variety. December 6, 2012. Retrieved February 24, 2014.
13. Busch, Anita (August 10, 2015). " 'Ready Player One' Author Ernest Cline Seals Monster Deal For
Next Book; All Eyes On Film Rights" (https://deadline.com/2015/08/ready-player-one-ernest-cline-aut
hor-next-book-film-rights-1201496871/). Retrieved September 9, 2017.
14. "Ernie Cline is writing a sequel to Ready Player One" (https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2017/
12/10/16758732/ernie-cline-ready-player-one-book-sequel). The Virge. December 10, 2017.
15. " 'Ready Player One' Book Sequel Sets November Publishing Date" (https://www.hollywoodreporter.c
om/heat-vision/ready-player-two-sets-november-publishing-date-1302284). The Hollywood Reporter.
July 8, 2020.
16. "VOWS: "Cristin Aptowicz, Ernest Cline" " (https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/19/fashion/weddings/cri
stin-aptowicz-ernest-cline.html). The New York Times. June 19, 2016.
17. Bilton, Nick (August 22, 2012). "One on One: Ernest Cline, Author of 'Ready Player One' " (https://bit
s.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/22/one-on-one-ernest-cline-author-of-ready-player-one/). Bits Blog.
Retrieved April 4, 2018.
18. https://deadline.com/2020/07/ready-player-two-sequel-novel-ernest-cline-november-publication-date-
1202980261/
19. "Ernest Cline confirms he's writing a 'Ready Player One' sequel" (https://ew.com/books/2017/12/11/e
rnie-cline-confirms-ready-player-one-sequel/). EW.com.
20. "AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Ernest Cline" (http://www.johnjosephadams.com/robot-uprisings/2014/03/3
1/author-interview-ernest-cline/). March 31, 2014.
21. "The Importance of Being Ernest' page at publisher Write Bloody Publishing's Website" (https://web.
archive.org/web/20180715023253/http://writebloody.com/shop/products/the-importance-of-being-ern
est-by-ernest-cline/). Archived from the original (http://writebloody.com/shop/products/the-importance
-of-being-ernest-by-ernest-cline/) on July 15, 2018. Retrieved May 8, 2018.

External links
Official website (http://www.ernestcline.com/)
Ernest Cline (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2094392/) on IMDb
Ernest Cline (http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?158548) at the Internet Speculative Fiction
Database

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ernest_Cline&oldid=1000819924"

This page was last edited on 16 January 2021, at 21:58 (UTC).

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