When Star Wars was a huge hit in 1977, 20th Century Fox was desperate to buy up another science-fiction franchise. Little did they know that they started the Alien franchise with the first film in 1979, and it has now branched off into four films with a fifth on the way. However, audiences cannot forget about the film Prometheus, and Ridley Scott wants to revisit that film which takes in the Alien universe.
Sigourney Weaver has been quoted as being excited for playing the character once again, according to Entertainment Weekly: "It's a great story and it's satisfying to me to give this woman an ending... The script itself has so much in it that's so original, but also really satisfies the, I would say, the primal needs of the aliens. It's a tribute to all of the great work that the other directors have done, in a way, but goes in a completely new direction. I hope we'll do it."
Yes, this is more of an "if" project rather than a "will" project. There have been talks of a sequel to Aliens that would essentially forget the darker and disappointing Alien 3 and the ever greater disappointment of Alien Resurrection. This would be directed by Neill Blomkamp, who already made a name for himself by directing District 9, Elysium, and Chappie.
It makes sense that Weaver would be glad to be Ripley again. The character killed herself in Alien 3 to be rid of one of those Xenomorph creatures, and then was cloned so she could appear in Alien Resurrection. The fourth film didn't end with any bit of closure, and a weird human/alien hybrid.
The issue is story, and Ridley Scott is making a follow-up to his mixed reviewed film Prometheus with Alien: Covenant. Is it possible that there is a set-up for some kind of connected universe here? If so, then I am assuming that Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection are no longer canon, along with those Alien vs. Predator films. Considering that the Xenomorph aliens, with their chest-bursting horror, have always been a mystery, it will be interesting to see how they will develop the mythology surrounding the creatures.
Clearly, there needs to be some kind of plan for this Alien universe, and whoever is in charge of it really needs to think in the long-term. Prometheus gave aliens who were apparently responsible for the human race, and the mystery of the aliens could have been essentially explained. However, the ending of the movie showed the main character (Noomi Rapace) wanting to know more, not to mention the audience. Are these holes in the plotline deliberate?
Alien: Covenant will be appearing in theaters on August 4, 2017. As for Alien 5, there might need to be more work on that.
