A couple of small, sci-fi horror space stories popped up late this afternoon that warrant some attention on what has already been an insanely busy day in the genre world.

First off, Variety is reporting that Voltage Pictures has acquired the rights to Alter a sci-fi script by John Sonntag and Thomas Sonntag, and will be partnering with Benderspink to shepherd the project to the big screen. The script, “centers on a team of scientists aboard a space station monitoring activity around a black hole when they receive a transmission showing their deaths at the hands of mysterious aliens.” Sounds like a pretty cool concept actually.

In somewhat bigger news, director Tommy Wirkola (Dead Snow, Hansel And Gretel: Witch Hunters) is now onboard to rewrite and direct Afterburn. In the film, “is set in a future where solar flares have left half the world a ravaged wasteland filled with mutants and pirates. Buried beneath the ash and rubble are priceless artifacts and some of the world’s most valuable works of art – for which wealthy Americans will pay any price. The story centers on a treasure hunter who leads his team into the quarantine zone, braving rival bounty hunters, rogue armies, pirate gangs and deadly mutants along the way.” THR is reporting that Gerard Butler (300, The Awful Truth) is set to star. Antoine Fuqua had been previously attached to direct.