Daniel H. Wilson , whose books like `` Where 's My Jet Pack ? '' and `` How to Survive a Robot Uprising '' explore the intersections between science fiction and real science . `` Clearly , there are not fully functional humanoid robots ... but there are a lot of components to telepresence that already exist . '' `` Surrogates '' director Jonathan Mostow , whose film credits include 2003 's `` Terminator 3 : Rise of the Machines , '' said he was drawn to the concept of surrogate robots as an extension of current technology . And , he said , as he met with scientists , he became convinced that something approaching the concept could one day be a reality . `` To me , it 's not even a question of the technology . Technology always catches up , '' he said . `` The question is , is some universal human urge being met by this invention ? It seems to me we have a fundamental human desire to be lazy , to sort of not have to do things in person and to do it remotely . `` That began with the telegraph
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Why leave home when you can send out a sexy , stylish robot version of yourself to do anything you tell it ? In '' Surrogates , '' lifelike robots take the place of humans in day-to-day life . That 's the world of `` Surrogates , '' a film starring Bruce Willis that opens Friday . Willis plays an FBI agent who investigates the first murder to occur in years in a world where no one worries about crime or pain , because their robots self-heal with a quick reboot . Far-fetched science fiction ? Sure . But scientists and the movie 's makers say the technology might not be as far away as most people think . Armies use remote-controlled robots to attack enemies and destroy land mines . Emerging technology for the disabled allows users to operate robotic limbs and control computer cursors without touching a keyboard . And emerging `` telepresence '' technology is letting people see , hear and , increasingly , walk , talk and gesture using human-sized robots a world away . `` There are a lot of real-world components to this , '' said robotics expert and author