2012: The War for Souls
(in development)
Director: TBD
Producers: Michael Bay, Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman
Release Date: 2010 (?)

Strieber's story centers on an academic researcher who discovers that multiple versions of Earth co-exist in different dimensions, but all are threatened by an apocalypse to occur in 2012 prophesied by the ancient Mayans. By opening a portal into a parallel universe, he makes contact with his double to stop the prophecy from being fulfilled.
     Information presented above is sourced from an article by The Hollywood Reporter

www.2012thewarforsouls.com (not yet active) TMZ.com reports that Michael Bay, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci may produce feature film version of 2012 at Warner Brothers Hollywood Reporter: Trio Sees '2012' Future Michael Bay's official website

The Grays
Sony Pictures (in development?)
Director: Wolfgang Petersen
Producers: Cary Brokaw and John Calley
Writer: Ken Nolan

Sony Pictures will pay screenwriter Ken Nolan (Black Hawk Down) $3 million for his 75-page "script-ment" (less than a script, but more than a treatment) of Whitley Strieber's as-yet-unpublished alien SF novel The Grays, one of the studio's largest payments for a treatment, Variety reported.
     It's not clear who'll star in The Grays, but insiders say the lead role is intended for a woman, the trade paper reported.
      Producing the pic are Avenue Pictures' Cary Brokaw and former Sony Pictures chairman John Calley - the duo behind Sony's recent adaptation of the Patrick Marber play Closer. Calley and Brokaw also recruited Nolan to adapt Robert Littell's The Company, a novel that's part roman a clef, part family history of the American intelligence community. Avenue head of production Aaron Geller will supervise the project's development for Brokaw's shingle. At the studio, exec VP Andrea Gianetti and senior VP Sam Dickerman will oversee development.
     An ex-advertising executive, Strieber began his career as a novelist with the horror titles The Hunger and Wolfen, both of which were turned into feature films. More recently, Strieber co-authored with Art Bell a book about doomsday climate change, The Coming Global Super Storm, which served as the inspiration for Fox's The Day After Tomorrow. Strieber also authored a novelization of that film. He first gained national notoriety for his 1987 book Communion, about his alleged abduction by aliens. The Grays, unlike Communion, is a fictional exploration of the effect aliens have on mankind. It will be published by the Tor/Forge imprint in August of 2006.
     Information presented above is sourced from articles by Variety's Claude Brodesser and from reports by SciFi Wire

www.thegrays-movie.com (not yet active) Whitley Strieber's statement about Sony Pictures' development of The Grays, November 19, 2005 Strieber's Grays bound for film, San Antonio Express-News, November 30, 2005

18 Apr 2006 UPDATE: The Grays on the Silver Screen
We are extremely pleased to report that Sony Pictures' development of the feaure film of Whitley Strieber's new novel The Grays continues. This confirmation comes directly from one of the producers of the film in a reply to an inquiry from the Whitley Strieber fan site, BeyondCommunion.com. See letter on left.

6 July 2006 UPDATE: The Grays
So far so good. Anne Strieber reports that “Whitley and I are living part time in California while we help produce the motion picture of his book The Grays.” They are available to Ken Nolan as Nolan hones the treatment; Whitley explains “I am not writing the script, but as an executive producer, I am thinking about creative aspects very hard, and communicating my ideas to the writer.”

November 2006 UPDATE: The Grays
Screenwriter Ken Nolan tells IGN’s Tim Clark “I am currently working on adapting Whitley Strieber’s THE GRAYS for Sony. Whitley has a magnificent sense of what can be truly real and terrifying. The film is supposed to go into production as soon as I turn in a great script—and I will, damn it—and it should be a great, terrifying film. Knock on wood.”

September 2007 UPDATE: The Grays
Sony has announced that Wolfgang Petersen will direct The Grays.

The Day After Tomorrow
2004, 20th Century Fox
Director Roland Emmerich's “global-warming extravaganza rife with hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes and the onset of the next ice age.” This is Emmerich's adaption of Whitley Strieber's story The Coming Global Superstorm, scripted by Emmerich and Jeffrey Nachmanoff (and to complete the circle, Whitley penned the novelization of their screenplay).

Official website for The Day After Tomorrow Poster Art A: Water (high resolution, sans text), (low res, with text) Poster Art B: Ice (high resolution, sans text), (low res, with text) Poster Art C: Liberty Ice (med res, with text), (British Quad) Poster Art D: Liberty Water Poster Art: Many of the International Posters (will open in a new window due to large size) Promotional lenticular card: when you view the card from different angles, the picture transforms from poster A to poster B (animated image may take a few moments to download and begin animation) Promotional calandar which cleverly has no future after May 28th

Wolfen
Directed by Michael Wadleigh
Screenplay by David Eyre, Michael Wadleigh
Starring Albert Finney, Diane Venora, Edward James Olmos, Gregory Hines, uncredited cameo by Tom Waits
1981

The Hunger
Directed by Tony Scott
Screenplay by Ivan Davis, Michael Thomas
Starring Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, Susan Sarandon,
Cliff DeYoung, Beth Ehlers
1983

.

Communion
Directed by Philippe Mora
Screenplay by Whitley Strieber
Starring Christopher Walken, Lindsay Crouse, Andreas Katsulas, Frances Sternhagen, Terri Hanauer, Joel Carlson
November 1989

Screenplay information: Communion: Screenplay is 102 pages. Strieber's original screenplay accentuated the terror of the experiences, whereas the director Mora encouraged Walken to accentuate the humor in the outrageousness of the experiences.

Trivia: Watch for the cameo appearance of the real Whitley Strieber and son in the Whitney museum scene.

Trivia: The text of the “book” that Whitley (Walken) is attempting to write on his glitch-prone computer is actually a description of films which have featured Perrier water product placements. In a later scene, Anne (Crouse) drinks a lemon Perrier.

Trivia: The Sci-Fi Channel announced in April 1999 that they would create a made-for-tv sequel, Beyond Communion, offering another opportunity to re-envision the events of Communion. But as of this writing, there have been no updates from the Sci-Fi Channel, suggesting their plans went astray.

Extra/Extended Scenes in the
Extended FOX TV Version & UK DVD

There are essentially 2 versions of Communion available. The “United States theatrical cut” (also used for cable-tv movie channels and all domestic video releases), and a longer “alternate cut” of the film shown on FOX television (which seems to be a European edition of the film, or a variation thereof).

Extra/Extended Scenes: Anne finds young Andrew sitting alone in his school yard, feeling dejected on Halloween day. • When Whitley visits Dr. Freidman, he describes the visitors' eyes while watching a large-eyed salamander frolicing in the physician's aquarium. • When Whitley's Russian friend Alex (see pic) finds Whitley in the diner, he tells Whitley that in his native country as a child he heard stories of small beings called “Kobalds” who lived in mines, stories which he believes to be true. This extended scene explains Alex's later declaration of “They are real, Whitley!” • On the “ship,” Whitley dances with the blue boys after they exchange greetings (see pic), immediately before the start of the “magic show.” This extended scene (possibly the most infamous of them all) must have been deleted at the last minute from the studio version, since the soundtrack audibly breaks at this point in the studio version. This scene also explains Whitley's later statement to his wife that he “danced” with the beings. • The stars in the sky above their apartment building near the end of the film do not briefly seem to resemble a visitor's face (a sorely missed special effect insert seen in image on left). • The end credits roll over a night-time aerial view of the Strieber family standing on the shore with monuments and the city behind them. (The wind caused by the camera helicopter nearly blows Lindsay Crouse's hat off)(see pic).
     Besides the differences in the scenes above, on the FOX television version the brightness level of bright objects was boosted and digitally diffused; This creates a hazy glow around lights which adds to the ethereal atmosphere on the “ship,” and hides some of the flaws in the special effects. However, since the entire film was subjected to this treatment even the late afternoon sunshine streaming into Dr. Janet Duffy's office appears to be the Second Coming.
      Despite this brightness problem, this longer version of Communion is by far the best version of this film. Besides the occasional Fox broadcast, this long version is only available on the UK DVD, which is not compatible with American DVD players.

 DVD (US/Canada)

The Special Collector's Edition DVD released in the United States from Elite Entertainment in June 2000 was prepared in concert with the director. It presents the short “U.S. theatrical cut” of Communion, with an extensive selection of extras and remastered 5.1 sound. The film is presented in matted widescreen. NTSC format, Region 1.

Widescreen Special Edition Laserdisc: Extras

Some of the extras on the widescreen special edition laserdisc are not available on the DVD

     Among the extras on the widescreen special edition laserdisc are a few seconds of the alternate end-credits scene (described above in the FOX television description), and the school-yard scene featuring young Andrew. These scenes are not incorporated into the film; they are shown afterwards as supplementary material.
      The widescreen special edition laserdisc also presents a few minutes of bloopers, improvisation, and outtakes, the most hilarious involving an actor identified as Tommy (costumed as a “Blue Boy”) attempting to probe Christopher Walken. Other outtakes illustrate the improvisational method by which some scenes were constructed. For example, to solicit impromptu reactions from Walken while he is aboard the ship, Mora voices to Walken (from off-camera) some of the lines which Strieber reported were communicated to him during his abduction, such as “we have a right to do this,” and “you are a chosen one.” These extras have only been made available on this widescreen special edition laserdisc; the DVD edition released later presents only brief excerpts, and even those excerpts are presented without the soundtrack (so you can't hear Walken cracking up about the failed probe attempts).
     Also featured on the widescreen special edition laserdisc is a commentary track by the director. (Note: this laserdisc's commentary track is not the same as the commentary track that appeared later on DVD). Mora is remarkably uncritical of the film's failings as he discusses the filmmaking process. Mora also goes on at great length about why he did not beleive the experiences that his friend related could be true. Whitley Strieber is spared some responsibility for the film as Mora relates that he departed significantly from the original script that Whitley Strieber had written, choosing to emphasize the humor in the outrageousness of the experiences, rather than the personal sense of terror that Strieber's original screenplay reportedly conveyed.

Widescreen Special Edition Laserdisc: Aspect Ratio

The proper matting of Communion is a matter of opinion.

     The widescreen special edition laserdisc presents Communion in a matted widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1 at the request of Phillipe Mora, the director. The film was actually shown in theatres in the slightly taller 1.85:1 aspect ratio; the proper aspect ratio is therefore a matter of opinion.
    The cinematographer of Communion seems to have a different opinion than the director, as he endorsed the original theatrical 1.85:1 aspect ratio for a rare VHS Collector's Edition, described more fully in the next section. It is the position of this website that the 2.35:1 aspect ratio added later by the director is a revisionist attempt to make the film seem more cinematic.
     The liner notes of the laser disc includes this message from Mora, in which he attempts to explain why he changed the aspect ratio: “The laserdisc version of Communion marks the first time this film has been shown in the 2.35:1 format that I hoped audiences would have originally experienced. The additional information contained in this format alters composition, design, mood, feeling, and consequently the meaning of the film.”
     However a side by side comparison of different versions establishes that there is no “additional information” to be found on either side of the new frame, so any change in mood and feeling is based purely on what was deleted from the top and bottom rather than from any “additional information”.
     That Mora has taken this matting of the top and bottom well beyond the way the film was meant to be presented is evident by the now problematic composition of several scenes. Important parts of scenes including the ritualistic hand gestures made by the “Blue Boys” while they are bowing near the end of the film, and parts of the climactic “magic show” are lopped off, suggesting this film was never composed with 2.35:1 widescreen in mind.

Widescreen Special Edition Laserdisc: Conclusion
     Although the best version of this film remains the FOX television version, the laserdisc's enjoyable outtakes/bloopers and Mora's commentary (although not as humble as one would hope) are both unique to this special edition laserdisc (Mora's commentary on the DVD is different, though not any more humble. The DVD features some of the same outtakes, but without sound).