Mark Rylance and Steven Spielberg team up once again for new sci-fi movie Ready Player One

MARK RYLANCE and Steven Spielberg seem to have established a mutual admiration society.

The pair have teamed up for a third time for Spielberg’s much anticipated new sci-fi movie Ready Player One.

For many the greatest actor of his generation, Sir Mark won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance as Soviet agent Rudolf Abel in their first collaboration, the Tom Hanks thriller Bridge Of Spies.

And audiences were captivated the following year when computer wizardry turned him into the BFG in Spielberg’s version of Roald Dahl’s classic tale.

Says Spielberg: “The whole nature of my approach to The BFG was to be able to use technology to advance the heart and create a flawless transposition between the genius of Mark Rylance and the genius of the tech guys, as they were able to digitally translate Mark’s soul onto film and the character of The BFG.

“I knew Mark was really going to knock it out of the ballpark and the digital guys paid more careful attention to how to preserve what Mark had given us on the day. Their artists did an amazing job, translating Mark accurately.

“About 95% of what Mark gave me is on the screen.”

Even if you’ve read Ernest Cline’s 2011 bestseller, on which Ready Player One is based, you won’t know the whole story.

The movie is set in 2045, when the world has been destroyed by climate change and famine —leaving the grim population to seek solace in a virtual reality world called the Oasis, where they can live happier, alternate lives.

When James Halliday (Rylance) the creator of the simulated world dies, he leaves behind his vast fortune — half-a-trillion dollars, no less — and control of the Oasis as a prize in an intricate pop-culture treasure hunt filled with 1980s references and nostalgia.

Was that the DeLorean from Back To The Future? Sure was.

But one thing you won’t see is any reference to Spielberg’s own movies, despite the book namechecking Indiana Jones.

Spielberg admits: “I’m not putting myself in this movie. They reference so many 80s movies. I’m just going to leave myself out of it. I can’t do that. Too self-referential.”

Rylance adds: “I’d say the film is very faithful to the book, but also an original story. There will always be something new with Steven.

“The book has a lot of puzzles and keys that the characters have to figure out, and Steven has introduced new ones so that the people who read the book will still not know how it’s going to work out. It’s a marvellous story with twists and turns and many thrilling moments.”

Rylance says crafting a realistic future overtaken by VR for the big screen has been a challenging task, even for the famed director.

“It’s a complex film for Steven to make, and he was very tired and worried making it,” he reveals.

“But, now he’s seen it, and he’s very excited.

“There is nothing to be worried about.

“It’s going to be an extraordinary movie-going experience. I’m excited to see it when it opens, like everyone else!”

Ready Player One is in cinemas now.