John Ridley Developing ‘Caves Of Steel’ Film Based On Isaac Asimov Sci-Fi Novel For 20th Century Studios

EXCLUSIVE: John Ridley, the Oscar winner behind 12 Years a Slave, is developing a feature take on Isaac Asimov’s 1954 sci-fi novel The Caves of Steel for 20th Century Studios, Deadline can reveal.

Ridley plans to direct Caves of Steel, having written the most recent draft of the script with Cheo Hodari Coker, the multi-hyphenate best known for creating Marvel’s Luke Cage. It’s not yet clear who will be producing.

A landmark work of science fiction, which is the first in Asimov’s Robot series, The Caves of Steel introduces readers to a future Earth where humanity has retreated into vast, domed cities — known as the “Caves of Steel” — to escape the harshness of the outside world. The story follows Elijah Baley, a New York City detective who is reluctantly partnered with R. Daneel Olivaw, a humanoid robot, to solve the high-profile murder of a “Spacer” scientist. (Spacers, we learn, are the descendants of Earth-born humans who have colonized other planets in the galaxy.) As Baley navigates the investigation, tensions arise between Earth’s overcrowded, robot-wary society and the more advanced Spacer civilizations, which embrace robotic integration.

Previously, BBC adapted the novel for television, with radio and game adaptations also emerging. Sources said Ridley’s film may also take inspiration from The Caves of Steel‘s sequels, The Naked Sun and The Robots of Dawn.

For Asimov, the Robot series captured a longtime interest in artificial intelligence, which produced his influential “Three Laws of Robotics.” Introduced in his 1942 short story “Runaround,” these laws have become a framework for discussing AI ethics and the challenges of programming intelligent systems to interact safely and effectively with humans.

Asimov’s “Three Laws” are discussed in I, Robot, the 2004 film starring Will Smith, which took inspiration (and its name) from the Russian-born author’s collection of short stories, published in 1950. One of the most prolific and influential writers in the history of science fiction, Asimov is also well known for his Foundation series, exploring the rise and fall of civilizations across a galactic empire, which inspired the Apple series, heading into its third season. Notably, he also co-wrote 1992’s The Positronic Man, which was adapted into the 1999 film Bicentennial Man starring Robin Williams.

Ridley won an Oscar for writing Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, earning three Emmy nominations for his work on American Crime, the anthology he created for ABC. Most recently, he wrote, directed, and produced Shirley, a biopic of the United States’ first Black congresswoman, Shirley Chisholm, for Netflix, which starred Academy Award winner Regina King. As a director, his other credits include series like Five Days at Memorial, Godfather of Harlem, Guerrilla and Let It Fall: Los Angeles 1982-1992, as well as 2013’s Jimi: All Is by My Side.

Most recently writing on and co-producing Paris Barclay’s doc Billy Preston: That’s the Way God Planned It on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee of the same name, Coker has also worked on films like Notorious and Creed II, along with Southland, Ray Donovan and other series.

Ridley is repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners and Rohner Walerstein; Coker by CAA and Literate Management/Production.