Credit: 20th Century StudiosThere are two brand-new Alien projects in the works — an Alien movie and an Alien television series! But is Sigourney Weaver involved in any of them?
Alien is one of the most terrifying horror franchises of all time. After bursting out of movie theater screens back in 1977 with Ridley Scott’s Alien (1977), the film went on to spawn a number of sequels, prequels, and crossovers, in the form of Aliens (1986), Alien 3 (1992), Alien: Resurrection (1997), Alien vs. Predator (2004), Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), Prometheus (2012), and Alien: Covenant (2017).
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But not every film in the series was a hit with fans. While Aliens is considered to be one of the greatest sequels of all time, its follow-ups Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection are widely hated. Perhaps this has something to do with Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) being killed off in the former, and resurrected as a xenomorph-human-hybrid in the latter.
And then there are the prequels, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. While they each have their strong points, they’re a tad bit bloated and pretentious (and directionless). Sigourney Weaver didn’t return for either of these films, as they take place before the Alien timeline, and she also didn’t return for the Alien vs. Predator crossover movies.
And that’s just the movies — there have been numerous Alien comic books, Alien novels, Alien video games, and much more over the decades. But now, there’s a new Alien movie and a new live-action Alien television series waiting to hatch.
Here’s everything you need to know about both of these projects, and also whether or not Sigourney Weaver will finally reprise her role as Ellen Ripley…
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Alien Television Series
What’s the Alien television series about?
The upcoming Alien television series is being developed by Noah Hawley, who’s best known for the American mystery drama Fargo (2014). It will premiere on Hulu at some point in the near future, and though no official synopsis has been revealed yet, it has been confirmed to take place on Earth 70 years from now, which will be a first for the franchise.
However, in an interview with Vanity Fair in 2021, Hawley said the series will not revolve around Ellen Ripley, saying:
“It’s not a Ripley story. She’s one of the great characters of all time, and I think the story has been told pretty perfectly, and I don’t want to mess with it. It’s a story that’s set on Earth also. The alien stories are always trapped… Trapped in a prison, trapped in a space ship. I thought it would be interesting to open it up a little bit so that the stakes of ‘What happens if you can’t contain it?’ are more immediate!”
Hawley has also stated that the series will focus on capitalism, which has created mass conflict between social classes, describing it as “class warfare with xenomorphs”.
Who’s in the Alien television series?
Recently, it was announced that Don’t Worry Darling (2022) star Sydney Chandler will be playing one of the leads in the Alien television series.
When’s the Alien television series out?
There is currently no release date for the Alien television series.
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Alien Movie
What’s the new Alien movie about?
Not much has been revealed about the upcoming Alien movie, however, the official Alien Twitter account recently shared an image of a face-hugger with its long, slimy limbs curled around a dumb slate.
Check it out below:
Happy #alienday everybody! (via:@fedalvar)
Happy #alienday everybody!
(via: @fedalvar) pic.twitter.com/uS2kH8TmcQ
— Alien (@AlienAnthology) April 26, 2023
Some fans are speculating that the image contains details that link to the popular first-person survival horror game Alien: Isolation (2014), which pits Ellen Ripley’s daughter Amanda Ripley (Andrea Deck) against the xenomorph, as well as some terrifying droids, in abandoned space station Sevastopol. But 20th Century Studios are yet to confirm this.
Either way, with Evil Dead (2013) and Don’t Breathe (2016) director Federico Álvarez at the helm, the film is likely to be a pretty gruesome entry in the series.
We also know that the film will be a stand-alone installment, though, and will not continue with the story established in Ridley Scott’s two prequels, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. As such, an adaptation of Alien: Isolation is entirely possible.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter in March, the film will focus on a younger group of space colonists trapped on a remote station with a xenomorph infestation. This sounds very similar to Alien: Isolation, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Who’s in the new Alien movie?
The team of space colonists in question will include actors Cailee Spaeny, David Jonsson, Spike Fearn, Alieen Wu, Archie Renaux, and Isabela Merced. Their specific roles, however, remain undisclosed.
The sad news is we can confirm that Sigourney Weaver won’t be reprising her role as Ellen Ripley in the upcoming Alien television movie.
Though the 73-year-old actress has already returned to another iconic franchise, having recently appeared in the 2021 sequel Ghostbusters: Afterlife, it’s unlikely we’ll ever see her step into the shoes of one of sci-fi’s most iconic characters and face off against the xenomorph again.
In a recent interview with Total Film magazine, Weaver said, “There are all kinds of younger actors taking this kind of role. And there was an Alien [film] that I really wanted to do with Neill Blomkamp and we didn’t get to do that, but, you know, that ship has sailed. I’m very happy doing what I’m doing. I put in my time in space!”
District 9 (2009) director Neill Blomkamp was previously set to direct an Alien sequel that would have wiped previous entries from canon a’ la Halloween (2018), serving as a direct follow-up to Aliens, with Sigourney Weaver and Michael Biehn reprising their roles as Ellen Ripley and Dwayne Hicks. But it has long been confirmed that the project was scrapped.
When’s the new Alien movie out?
There is currently no release date for the new Alien movie.
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Are you looking forward to the new Alien movie and the new Alien television series? Are you disappointed that Sigourney Weaver won’t be returning in either of them? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!