There is currently no official word on the status of the Starship Troopers TV show. We know, at least at one point, that Sony was developing the project with original screenwriter Ed Neumeier. The plan, when the idea first surfaced in early 2019, was to have the original cast return. Now, Casper Van Dien, who played Johnny Rico in the franchise, reveals his idea for the show, which would involve him returning as "old man Rico."

Casper Van Dien recently discussed his proposal for the show. Though not official plot details, the actor explained that he feels now is the perfect time for Starship Troopers to take over the small screen, with him taking on a mentor role for the younger generation of soldiers. Here's what he had to say about it.

"I think that Starship Troopers would be the best TV series right now. I think that it was such a cool first movie, and the other ones, they didn't have the heart that the first one had. I think a Starship Troopers movie, turned into a TV series now, everything that was in the original movie, would fit so well now with today's climate and everything. I think it would be nice to have old man Rico back. I think it would be fun to be in there and have some young blood in there, but still have one old, crotchety old man in there, like me... I think that would be a fun thing to shoot. I think with the political climate, and the place we're at today, it would fit so perfect."

When we spoke to Casper Van Dien last year, he explained that he had been very involved with developing the show, and even had a top-notch director friend he was discussing the project with. Since he worked with Robert Rodriguez on Alita: Battle Angel, it was reasonable to speculate that might be who he was talking about. In the same interview, the actor wouldn't confirm or deny the director, but said Rodriguez would be perfect for the job.

"I would love it if Robert Rodriguez was in the mix. I would love it and I think he would be the perfect guy for it."

Over the years, Casper Van Dien has had a lot of big directors talk to him about Starship Troopers. Everyone from Quentin Tarantino to Edgar Wright loves it. So he would like to see them all hop on board and direct episodes of the show, should it ever move forward.

"I think that all those directors, it would be fun, to have them come in and do an episode or two or three, or an arc, or something like that. I think it would be fun if we had that kind of thing where it's real filmmakers making the thing. That would be my goal."

Starship Troopers was released in 1997 and was not a financial success at the time. It has, however, gained cult status over the years and spawned a series of several, direct-to-video sequels. We'll be sure to keep you posted as any details on the possible TV show are made available. This news comes to us via Inverse.