Writers Discuss Michael Bay's "2012"

"Transformers" screenwriters Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman are already hard at work on their next sci-fi film, the Michael Bay directed "2012: The War of the Worlds," reports RottenTomatoes. The story is based on a book by Whitley Strieber and follows an academic researcher who opens a portal into a parallel universe and makes contact with his double in order to stop an apocalypse foreseen by the ancient Mayans.

"It is his [Strieber's] latest theory of what's going to go down in 2012 based on the Mayan calendar and based on factual astronomical convergences are going to happen on that day," said Orci.

The book will only provide a basic framework, as the screenwriters will address the needs of a film before the needs of Strieber's theories. "We really like the initial concept. We always try to be extremely free with what the dictates of the live action story need to be. If it ends up being extremely similar to the book, great. But we don't stick to anything just because it's there. We question everything."

"2012" is currently in pre-production and is set to be released in 2010.

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