Director Robert Rodriguez is joining forces with writer Max Borenstein for a new sci-fi project for Studio 8 entitled Hypnotic. Robert Rodriguez is attached to both direct and produce the project, with Max Borenstein set to rewrite an original script by Robert Rodriguez. No other producers are attached at this time, and there has been no production schedule released or release date announced. It's clear, though that Studio 8 has high hopes for this project.

While Max Borenstein is keeping his plot details under wraps, Hypnotic is described as a, "grounded cop thriller with sci-fi elements," with Studio 8 seeing potential for a future franchise. It isn't known if this will be the next project that Robert Rodriguez will direct or not at this time. The filmmaker is currently in pre-production on STX Entertainment's Uglydolls movie, which is slated for release on May 10, 2019, although it isn't clear when principal photography on that project is slated to begin. The filmmaker is also returning to his low-budget roots by making a new $7,000 film, just like his acclaimed debut El Mariachi, for a new series on his El Rey Network entitled Rebel Without a Crew: The Series.

Robert Rodriguez is currently in post-production on Alita: Battle Angel, which was just pushed by over five months by 20th Century Fox, from July 13, 2018 to December 21, 2018. The move actually puts Alita: Battle Angel into a rather competitive frame, opening alongside Paramount's Bumblebee, a spin-off of their lucrative Transformers franchise, Warner Bros.' next DCEU superhero adventure Aquaman and Sony's Holmes and Watson. It also opens between Universal's Mortal Engines and Sony's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse on December 14, and 20th Century Fox's Bohemian Rhapsody and Disney's Mary Poppins Returns on Christmas Day.

Alita: Battle Angel will mark the first feature film Rodriguez has directed since 2014's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, but he has been keeping plenty busy on the small screen as well. He also created From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series, the first original series on his El Rey cable network, and he also executive produced Matador, Cutting Crew, Lucha Underground, Spy Kids: Mission Critical and much more. He also wrote the screenplays for upcoming movies like Johnny Quest and Machete Kills in Space, but it remains unclear when those projects will move forward.

Max Borenstein got his big break by writing the 2014 blockbuster Godzilla, after making a few short films, and he went on to create the short-lived Fox series Minority Report in 2015. He also wrote the script for last year's Kong: Skull Island and he also wrote Godzilla: King of Monsters, slated to hit theaters in March 2019, and he is also writing one of the five coveted Game of Thrones spin-off shows that HBO is developing. One of the writer's older scripts, What Is Life Worth, is getting closer to production, with Michael Keaton attached to star and David Frankel directing, with the rights being sold at the European Film Market.The Hollywood Reporter broke the news on Hypnotic earlier today.