Alien: Resurrection is widely considered a low point for the iconic sci-fi franchise and was hardly the sendoff Sigourney Weaver‘s Ellen Ripley deserved. Plans to set this right with a further sequel have been mooted on more than one occasion but have never come to fruition, most likely because series mastermind Ridley Scott chose to pursue a raft of prequels to the 1979 original, rather than plot out further adventures for the kickass heroine.
Following Alien: Covenant‘s underwhelming box office performance and Disney’s big-money acquisition of Fox, rumors of a fifth entry in the mainline Alien saga have been bandied about, but it appears there’s some truth to them. Long-time franchise producer and writer Walter Hill has just revealed a screenplay treatment for an all-new sequel featuring Weaver‘s Ripley.
The 50-page treatment for Alien 5 was co-written by producer David Giler, with whom Hill co-wrote Alien 3. Speaking to Syfy Wire, Hill described the screenplay sample as “a meditation on both the universe of the Alien franchise and the destiny of the character of Lt. Ellen Ripley.”
“Sigourney, as she has from the very beginning, is being too modest about her proven ability to pull off the idea – which is to tell a story that scares the pants off your date, kicks the ass of a new Xenomorph, and conducts a meditation on both the universe of the Alien franchise and the destiny of the character of Lt. Ellen Ripley.”
No doubt some Alien diehards will welcome the idea of a decent sendoff for Ripley but it’s important to keep in mind that Weaver is now 70 years old, which is long in the tooth for a Xenomorph slayer. Moreover, Disney is yet to announce any firm plans for the Alien brand and it remains unclear how a property with a hard R rating will fit under the Mouse House’s umbrella.
There’s also likely to be fans who would be disappointed if Scott doesn’t get the chance to complete his prequel series and bridge the gap between the precursor movies and the original Alien. Sure, Prometheus and Covenant were divisive, but it would be a shame if the work that went into them was all for nothing.