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Author Rick Yancey discusses 'The 5th Wave' and the journey from book to film

Whether it's Matt Damon setting foot on Mars in The Martian or a galactic rebellion's fight for freedom in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, one thing is certain: Hollywood has their eyes (and cameras) set on the stars.

The 5th Wave, an upcoming sci-fi film from Sony Pictures, is a bit different.

The film, which stars Chloë Grace Moretz (Carrie, Kick-Ass), Nick Robinson (Jurassic World) and Liev Schreiber (Spotlight), shows moviegoers what the world might look like in the days following an alien invasion. What would happen if a group of kids are suddenly tasked with growing up all at once in the face of total annihilation?

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The movie, and the 2013 sci-fi book it's based on, seek to answer that question. Author Rick Yancey said it's not just another story about aliens, but the human capacity to survive.

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"It's the true apocalyptic event," Yancey said. "These kids have no transition or growth period to make these incredibly hard, almost impossible decisions. Even us adults have the luxury of thinking things through."

The story is told in the aftermath of waves of alien attacks which devastate the developed world. The main character, played by Moretz, loses her family and is on a quest to find her younger brother. Yancey said because of the current state of Hollywood, now is the perfect time to tell this kind of story.

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Alex Roe, left, and Chloe Grace Moretz star in Columbia Pictures' "The 5th Wave"
Alex Roe, left, and Chloe Grace Moretz star in Columbia Pictures' "The 5th Wave"(Chuck Zlotnick / Sony Pictures)

"I think things do go in cycles, and we're cycling back to that time period," Yancey said, touching on the resurgence of space age pop culture. Everything from Star Wars to The X-Files and Independence Day. "But my love of sci-fi goes further back than the '90s and I think Hollywood watches what Hollywood does."

And Yancey said it's not only with sci-fi films, but a general interest in post-apocalyptic storytelling and young adult fiction. Film series like Twilight and The Hunger Games have a built-in demographic, and Yancey said he hopes The 5th Wave can not only jump into that, but expand from there.

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"I think when you try to follow a trend you can doom yourself," he said. "But here, there is no dystopian society controlling people. This happens right here, right now, so it's different from what else is out there."

Yancey said while many books have a tough time reaching the silver screen, The 5th Wave's process went more than smooth, with Sony Pictures optioning the film before Yancey had even finished the final draft.

"Talk about pressure," he said. "I had written a book proposal to sell the series and it was such a positive response that we decided to float it around Hollywood. It happened quite quickly."

And if all goes well, Yancey would like to see the other two books in the series, The Infinite Sea and The Last Star, make the jump as well. He's not worried about the story changing in the transition either, and said he's got a special way of thinking about on-screen adaptations.

"When you're reading the book, the writer doesn't describe the character down to an eyelash, but in film that's what you get," he said. "I saw the film for the first time last night and it was surreal. You have to think of each telling of the story as a different variation."

The 5th Wave hits theaters Jan. 22.