Christopher McQuarrie will write and direct a live-action adaptation of the 1970s anime Star Blazers for Skydance Productions.

Also known as Space Battleship Yamato, the story follows a small group of survivors after an alien race has obliterated earth. The refugees have only a year before the radiation from the attack wipes out their underground fortress. Salvation comes in the form of alien technology, which allows a select group to travel across the universe and stave off extinction.

The film is envisioned as a grand sci-fi epic, which comes on the heels of Skydance's recent hits World War Z and G.I. Joe Retaliation. Their next release is Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, which was just bumped out of its Christmas release date and into 2014. The team at Skydance is also working on Terminator 5.