Sigourney Weaver’s performance as Ellen Ripley in the Alien franchise made her an icon of science fiction, appearing in four Alien movies up to now. But she hasn’t played the role since 1997’s poorly received Alien: Resurrection (aka Alien 4). That abeyance, however, could well be coming to an end.
According to trusted Hollywood insider Daniel Richtman, the actress may soon return to the franchise. Typically cryptic in his latest tweet, the tipster simply stated that Weaver could “still come back,” though stopped short of revealing any further details.
There is a logic to this, though. While Weaver hasn’t attached herself to any Alien project since Resurrection, she’s always maintained that she would return for the right script. And with new landlords Disney in town, it’s possible at long last that that script has been delivered.
So Weaver could still come back to the Alien franchise 🤔
— Daniel Richtman (@DanielRPK) June 19, 2020
Since her last appearance, we’ve had Alien vs. Predator (the less said about that the better) and Ridley Scott’s prequel series, but no Alien 5. To date, no sequel to the original line of movies has ever been made. Many have attempted to get one off the ground, but it’s remained stuck firmly in development hell. The chances of the film finally entering production will go through the roof though if Weaver gets on board. Watch this space is all I’ll say.
But tell us, what would you make of Ellen Ripley returning to Alien all these years later? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below. I think the reaction would be overwhelmingly positive. After so many decidedly underwhelming spinoffs, and after putting up with Ridley Scott’s cannibalization of his own work, a Ripley comeback has the potential to ignite the franchise once more. Just imagine a new Alien movie with Weaver on the poster. It’d be a smash.