started going around and then it was like, 'Oh my God this is a weird, little strange film.' " GB: "District 9? is a bit of a rarity in the Comic-Con sector in that it's not an adaptation of a comic book or a toy, it's not a remake or a sequel, it's not based on an old television show.... PJ: Yeah, I guess so. I mean I guess Comic-Con in a way celebrates popular culture so its emphasis is always going to be on the culture that exists, I guess, which is clear enough. But I suppose it covers everything doesn't it? It covers movies and TV and it's obviously become a place where if you've got something new it's a good place to expose it to the fans. GB: Certainly, it's a place to introduce the new and celebrate the past, but I suppose what I was suggesting is that these days it seems difficult to make a big special-effects film unless it's based on some pre-existing, known quantity in pop-culture, such as  a novel, comic book, video game, TV show, toy line or previous movie. You look at the Harry Potter films, " Iron Man ," " Star Trek ," " Transformers "... PJ: I mean, personally I think that's one of the most depressing things about the film industry generally today. The writers and directors should be blamed just as much as the studios because really everything seems to be a remake or adapting a 1970s