Dreamworks just can’t say no to giant f’n robots. The studio seems convinced that in the wake of Transformers, almost any action movie with large mechanical creatures is destined for success, and who knows… they might be right. In addition to the robot boxing movie they’re setting up with Shawn Levy called Real Steel, they have also just acquired the rights to Daniel H. Wilson’s upcoming book Robopocalypse, which “explores the fate of the human race after a robot uprising”. Sound familiar?

Wilson has previously written such humourous books as How to Build a Robot Army: Tips on Defending Planet Earth Against Aliens, Ninjas, and Zombies and How to Survive a Robot Uprising: Tips on Defending Yourself Against the Coming Rebellion (the latter of which is also currently in development at Paramount), but before anyone (ahem… Jay) jumps to conclusions and assumes this will be another gimmicky Zombieland-esque comedy with a strict set of “rules”, it’s worth nothing that Robopocalypse is actually his first serious novel. On top of that, Wilson has a Ph.D. in robotics, so the story is said to be somewhat authentic and rooted in real science. Co-president of production Mark Sourian had this to say:

“Daniel H. Wilson’s cautionary tale of man versus machine grabbed us from the very beginning… Wilson’s background in robotics and artificial intelligence grounds his story with a frightening level of realism.”

Okay, I’m interested. The book isn’t expected to be published until 2011, but Dreamworks is supposedly fast-tracking the movie so perhaps we’ll see it on screen before the book hits stores? He also has another upcoming book called Bro-Jitsu: The Martial Art of Sibling Smackdown, which has been optioned by Nickelodeon. Sounds like this Daniel Wilson fellow is a bit of a machine himself.