Ridley Scott is almost 90 years old and the man never stops. He’s about to be released Gladiator IIthe sequel to one of his most critically acclaimed films – and at one point he would follow it up with a film about the legendary 1970s band The Bee Gees. Instead, however, Scott has decided to throw in another movie upfront, one set at the end of the world, and he does so with his latest film. Gladiator star.

Deadline confirms that Ridley Scott is once again teaming up with Paul Mescal to create an adaptation of the book The dog stars by Peter Heller for 20th Century Fox. The film takes place after a deadly virus has wiped out most of humanity, where two unlikely survivors – a civilian pilot and a war veteran – live together with their dog. One day they hear a mysterious radio signal that could mean hope, so they take off and fly beyond the boundaries of their safety zone, hoping to solve the mystery.

According to the trade, Scott decided to make The dog stars because he wanted to work with Mescal again and Mescal had an opening in his schedule early next year, after a short stint on Broadway in A tram called Desire. Mark L. Smith, who co-wrote The Revenant and the recent hit Twistersedited Heller’s book.

By the way, that book won all kinds of awards and is apparently excellent, which makes sense since Ridley Freaking Scott is directing the film adaptation. At 86 years old, he still has the same passion and vision he had when he was creating Blade Runner And Stranger almost 50 years ago. He is simply one of the best directors to ever step behind a movie camera. Scott has not made it alone in recent years Gladiator IIwith which he made one of his greatest films ever Napoleonrevisited Stranger franchise with Covenant And Prometheusand adapted another fantastic science fiction novel, The Martian. So if someone can casually make a post-apocalyptic drama before tackling the band behind ‘Staying’ Alive’, and at the same time make new Stranger projects and god knows what else, it’s Scott.

Want more io9 news? Find out when to expect the latest releases from Marvel, Star Wars and Star Trek, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.