Meet Daniels. You know her, of course; she’s the tough-as-nails terraforming expert to be played by Katherine Waterston (Fantastic Beasts) in this month’s Alien: Covenant.
From the cropped haircut to the steely sense of determination – determination that doesn’t blink, even when faced with unimaginable terror – Daniels is essentially Ripley reincarnate, fuelling rumors that Waterston’s protagonist, what with her ash-grey tank top and pulse rifle, is in some way related to the great Ellen Ripely. Director Ridley Scott has fielded that very question in the past, and has consistently denied that Covenant will reveal Daniels to be the long-lost mother of Ellen Ripley. Then again, the filmmaker was notoriously cagey about Noomi Rapace’s involvement in the prequel-sequel – her Elizabeth Shaw cropped up in the film’s most recent prologue – so take from that what you will.
As for this brand new promo, it’s designed to spotlight the traumatic story arc facing Daniels, who goes from wide-eyed terraforming expert to one of the crew’s fiercest fighters – those Xenomorphs aren’t going to torch themselves – in the blink of an eye. H.R. Giger’s biomechanical beast isn’t the only creature to feature in Covenant per se, considering that the crew will also have the Neomorph, a goblin-like variation of the monster with milky-white skin, to contend with. And going off the chilling first clip, it’s an alien that tends to exit a human body through the spine, as opposed to the chest.
Following its world premiere in London last night, Alien: Covenant is barrelling down on its long-anticipated release. May 19th is the date for your diaries – May 12th for those across the pond – and at least based on early Twitter reactions, Ridley Scott has executed a true return to form.