Ridley Scott’s Alien came out in 1979 and changed the world of horror and sci-fi movies forever, becoming one of cinema’s greatest classics. Since it came out it spawned a slew of sequels, prequels, and spin-offs. The franchise varies in styles and quality but its place in pop culture cannot be disputed. Now, Scott confirms that he is working on a new addition to the collection.
Speaking with Forbes, the director addressed the last entries to the franchise which were badly received by audiences. He said that the new movie will probably not follow in their footsteps. “That’s in process. We went down a route to try and reinvent the wheel with Prometheus and Covenant. Whether or not we go directly back to that is doubtful because Prometheus woke it up very well,” he said. “But you know, you’re asking fundamental questions like, ‘Has the Alien himself, the facehugger, the chestburster, have they all run out of steam? Do you have to rethink the whole bloody thing and simply use the word to franchise?’ That’s always the fundamental question.”
Prometheus was Scott’s first attempt to stray from the franchise’s formula of alien vs. humans in different scenarios and forms. The movie was a prequel expanding on the creation of the xenomorphs. After the movie left audiences somewhat confused, though, the director changed direction with Alien: Covenant trying to go back to the classic formula while maintaining some of the prequel’s ideas. As Covenant bombed at the box office, it remains to be seen in which direction Scott will choose to lead the franchise in the future.
