Angels & Demons (film) with author Dan Brown. In May 2006, following the release of the 2006 film adaptation of "The Da Vinci Code", Sony Pictures hired screenwriter Akiva Goldsman, who wrote the film adaptation of "The Da Vinci Code", to adapt "Angels & Demons". Filming was originally to begin in February 2008 and was originally going to be released on December 19, 2008, but because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, the film was pushed back for May 15, 2009. David Koepp rewrote the script before shooting began. Director Ron Howard chose to treat "Angels & Demons" as a sequel to
The Da Vinci Code (film) Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and other religious groups to stop the showing of the film. However, Cecille Guidote Alvarez, Philippine Presidential Adviser on Culture and the Arts, said the Philippine government would not interfere in the controversy about the film and leaves the decision to the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board's (MTRCB) rating. Eventually, MTRCB decided to give "The Da Vinci Code" an R-18 rating (restricted to those 18 years of age and above) despite PAAP's opposition to showing it. The film was banned outright in the Independent State of Samoa after church leaders watching