Six years after the release of Ready Player One and we seem no closer to getting a sequel, but Olivia Cooke’s character may be the answer to making it happen. The actor played Samantha Cook, AKA Art3mis, in the Steven Spielberg movie, the genius Halliday enthusiast who played a significant part in Parzival winning the Easter Egg hunt. Though she wasn’t the main character of Ready Player One, Cooke’s Art3mis left a lasting impression, which means she may be the key to the movie continuing into a Ready Player One sequel.
Speilberg’s 2018 movie Ready Player One is based on the book of the same name by Ernest Cline and was a significant success. The film made $583 million at the global box office (via Box Office Mojo) and earned itself a Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite this, the movie has yet to receive a sequel, even though Cline released the Ready Player Two book back in 2020. This likely comes down to the poor performance of this sequel novel, but Cooke’s Ready Player Two character could be the answer to giving a movie sequel a different outcome.
A Ready Player One Movie Line Perfectly Set Up Ready Player Two 2 Years Before The Book Came Out
Spielberg changed the nature of Halliday’s avatar in his Ready Player One movie, coincidentally setting up the book sequel’s villain plot twist.
Olivia Cooke’s Art3mis Could Be The Main Character Of A Ready Player Two Movie
Though Cline said back in 2020 that a Ready Player Two movie was already in the early stages of production, nothing ever came of it. The author said this (via Screen Rant) before the novel itself had received an onslaught of negative reviews, so it’s likely that this has something to do with why Speilberg never saw the project through. A movie adaptation would need to start with an entirely fresh idea, and considering the popularity of Cooke’s character, she could be the key to a successful Ready Player Two movie.
Wade Watts was an easy character to cheer for in the Ready Player One movie, but he wasn’t nearly as cool as Art3mis. Capable and charismatic, she served as the driving force of the rebellion against Nolan Sorrento and IOI. This was even more true for her book counterpart. While Wade wanted to use his winnings to avoid the problems of the real world, Art3mis hoped to use such influence to pull society out of dystopia. After sharing in Wade’s winnings at the end of Ready Player One, Ready Player Two could focus more on how she became the world’s champion.
Olivia Cooke’s Star Power Could Make A Ready Player Two Movie A Success
Not only is Art3mis badass enough to lead her own successful sequel, but Cooke’s growing star power would mean a readily marketable film. Since Ready Player One, the actor has gone on to star in a number of successful projects. Cooke starred as Sid Baker alongside Gary Oldman in the 2022 series Slow Horses and Alicent Hightower in the Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon, both of which thrust her to higher levels of fame. This means that if she were to return for Ready Player Two, her fans would be likely to head to theaters to watch.
Out of the Ready Player One cast, Cooke is the only one contracted to return to a sequel (via Screen Rant), another reason that her character would likely be essential for Ready Player Two. Of course, now in her 30s, the sequel would need to either take place after a time jump or be set entirely within the OASIS, where Cooke would be aged down by the motion capture technology that brought avatars like Art3mis and Parzival to life. Ultimately, this would again mean that the plot of the Ready Player Two book would need to be scrapped, but that was already the case anyway.
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Spielberg’s Ready Player One Movie Changes Makes A Book-Faithful Sequel Impossible
Aside from the unpopular status of the Ready Player Two book, there are several reasons that it would be difficult for Speilberg to adapt this novel into a movie sequel. The director made significant changes to Wade’s story, ending Ready Player One with the character realizing that the real world was far more important than the virtual one James Halliday had created. However, this wasn’t a lesson that Wade learned until Ready Player Two after his addiction to the OASIS destroyed his relationship with Art3mis and the rest of his friends.
Additionally, the Ready Player One movie made James Halliday into a far more wise and sagely character, implying that he was some sort of ghost-like force living through his avatar within the OASIS. Ready Player Two contradicted this by turning Halliday’s avatar into the central villain—a maniacal AI who believes himself beyond the intelligence of humans and, therefore, worthy of ruling over them. Ultimately, this plotline just doesn’t fit with Spielberg’s Ready Player One, so starting fresh with a story about Cooke’s Art3mis may be the best way to make a sequel happen.
