The Alien franchise has been around for over 40 years now, and as you would expect from any brand that’s existed for so long, there’s been an awful lot of inconsistency. Nobody can argue that Ridley Scott’s original and James Cameron’s first sequel are all-time classics of the sci-fi genre, but ever since then the big screen adventures of the Xenomorphs have been very hit or miss.
Alien 3 and Resurrection are far from great movies but they still have lot of fans, although most people are in agreement that the Predator crossovers were pretty awful. Scott eventually returned to the fold for the divisive Prometheus, and the prequel did well enough at the box office to warrant a sequel. But the combination of Alien: Covenant disappointing financially and Disney’s takeover of Fox seems to have put any future plans for the franchise on hold.
One abandoned project was Neill Blomkamp’s Alien 5, which would have featured the return of Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley and Michael Biehn’s Hicks and ignored everything that happened after the second movie, but it ultimately fell apart when the studio decided to back Ridley Scott’s vision instead when he showed an interest in directing a new chapter.
However, in a recent interview, Weaver admitted that shortly after Blomkamp’s movie fell by the wayside, longtime franchise producer Walter Hill sent her a 50-page story outline for a new Alien outing that would see the actress reprising her most iconic role. While she admitted that it might not ever happen, she didn’t exactly slam the door shut on a potential return, either.
“I don’t know. Ridley has gone in a different direction. Maybe Ripley has done her bit. She deserves a rest. I’ve always felt like she was such a partner. She is always in my stomach.”
Fans would no doubt be on board with the idea of Ripley heading up another Alien movie, but it looks like ship might have well and truly sailed this time. Not only is Weaver 70 years old and not as willing to put herself through the physical wringer as she once was, but with Disney now in control of the rights, it seems unlikely that the staunchly family-friendly studio would have any interest in ponying up the money required to mount an effects-heavy and R-rated sci-fi.