Ridley Scott to direct Alien prequel

01 August 2009

Gerard Wood

First we learned that the new Alien movie would not be a remake but a prequel, an unlooked for stroke of fortune in this Age of Remakes, Reboots and other such Regurgitations of pre-digested ideas. Now we discover that Ridley Scott has signed on to direct (and produce) the prequel. Surely news about this project could not get any better than this?

Scott directed the original Alien movie back in 1979, a science fiction horror classic in which the crew of the commercial vessel Nostromo intercept a transmission originating from an uncharted planet. On orders from corporate HQ they investigate, only to discover a derelict spacecraft, the remains of a huge alien - its chest ripped wide open - and a chamber full of "eggs". Too late the crew understand that it wasn't a distress signal they'd intercepted, but a warning, and the rest is chest-bursting cinematic history.

As he would do again a few years later with Blade Runner, Scott created an entirely new vision of the future with Alien: a gritty, dark, horrific and very welcome antithesis to the pristine shine of George Lucas' Star Wars. He was not involved with any of the three sequels, and although there had been whisperings over the years that he might direct a fifth instalment, this appeared to be little more than rumour and wishful thinking. Until now.

Jon Spaihts has been brought on board to write the prequel. Although no details about the story are available as yet, we'll presumably learn something more about the derelict alien spacecraft that the crew of the Nostromo discover. But is there a place for the crew of the Nostromo in this prequel and if so, who could possibly take on the role of Ripley, Sigourney Weaver's iconic heroine?

According to Scott's page on IMDB, the movie is scheduled for a 2011 release.

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