A new sci-fi comedy is in the works at Sony Pictures, bringing together filmmaker Michael Shanks and director-producer Adam McKay for an untitled project that is being kept tightly under wraps.
Shanks, who gained attention with his feature debut Together, will pen the screenplay, while McKay is attached to direct. The latter will also produce alongside Todd Schulman under their Hyperobject Industries banner.
Joining them on the production side is Andrew Mittman, known for his work on Wednesday and his involvement in the development of Tim Burton’s reimagining of Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman. Mittman is producing via 1.21 Pictures, with Kai Dolbashian serving as executive producer. The team previously collaborated with Shanks on Together.
While plot specifics remain undisclosed, the project is described as a sci-fi comedy, marking another genre shift for McKay, whose filmography spans everything from Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Talladega Nights to The Big Short, Vice, and the satirical hit Don’t Look Up.
Shanks, meanwhile, has steadily built his reputation after starting out with YouTube and digital shorts. His breakout film Together, starring Dave Franco and Alison Brie, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2025.
The filmmaker is also gearing up for his next project, Hotel, Hotel, Hotel, Hotel, a sci-fi thriller backed by A24. The script, written by Shanks, previously featured on the 2021 Black List and marks his first collaboration with McKay and Schulman as producers.
Outside of this new collaboration, Hyperobject Industries continues to expand its slate. One of its upcoming ventures includes a limited series on Jeffrey Epstein, adapted from Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story by Julie K Brown, with Laura Dern attached to star.
