The Day the Earth Stood Still is a 2008 American science fiction thriller film and a loose adaptation of the 1951 film of the same name. The screenplay by David Scarpa is based on the 1940 classic science fiction short story “Farewell to the Master” by Harry Bates and the 1951 screenplay adaptation by Edmund H. North.

Directed by Scott Derrickson and starring Keanu Reeves as Klaatu, this version replaces the Cold War theme of nuclear warfare with the contemporary issue of humankind’s environmental damage to the planet. It follows Klaatu, an alien sent to try to change human behavior or eradicate humans from Earth.

The film was originally scheduled for release on May 9, 2008, but was released on a roll-out schedule beginning December 12, 2008, screening in both conventional and IMAX theaters. The critical reviews were mainly negative, with 186 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes showing only 21% of them were positive; typically the film was found to be “heavy on special effects, but without a coherent story at its base”. In its opening week, the film took the top spot at the U.S. box office and went on to gross over $233 million worldwide. The Day the Earth Stood Still was released on home video on April 7, 2009.