The Alien franchise has had a bumpy road over the years. More specifically, for Sigourney Weaver’s iconic heroine Ellen Ripley, whose demise in Alien 3 polarized audiences. The next installment, Alien: Resurrection, featuring Ripley’s clone, did not fare much better either.
Now, with the franchise back on track with last year’s Alien: Romulus and the FX series Alien: Earth, could Ripley finally get a worthy sendoff? Appearing at New York Comic Con (per The Wrap) for a mini-Alien reunion panel, Weaver made some surprise news regarding a new screenplay from longtime franchise producer Walter Hill. Not only has Hill’s script piqued Weaver’s interest, but Disney’s as well.
“Walter Hill is a very good friend of mine, and he wrote 50 pages where Ripley would be now, and they are quite extraordinary. I don’t know if it’s going to happen, but I have had a meeting with Fox, Disney, or whoever it is now. I said I have never felt the need. I was always like, let her rest, let her recover. But what Walter has written seems so true to me as very much about the society that would incarcerate someone who has tried to help mankind. She’s a problem to them, so she’s sort of tucked away. Anyway, I think it’s a very strong first 50 pages, and I’m thinking about working with Walter to see what the rest of the story would be.”
Since 1997’s Resurrection, Weaver has only reprised Ripley in voiceover form in the Alien: Isolation video game from 2014. The star previously dismissed returning to the Alien franchise except for the unproduced Aliens sequel from Neill Blomkamp. The Blomkamp project had concept art made before Ridley Scott influenced Fox to shut the project down for Alien: Covenant.
As far as why Weaver is drawn to Hill’s new script, it goes beyond Ripley blowing up Xenomorphs again. This time, things get very political.
Also Check Out: Sigourney Weaver On Why She Joined Star Wars In The Mandalorian And Grogu
“Except for Neil, I’ve never felt the need to reprise the role. I was always like, ‘Let her rest! Let her recover!’. But what Walter has written is so…first of all, [it] seems so true to me. It’s very much about the society that would incarcerate someone who has tried to help mankind, but she’s a problem to them, so she’s tucked away. I’m thinking about working with Walter to see what the rest of the story would be. It would not be running around air shafts. It would be a very different kind of Alien with a really good script. Scary.”
Do you want to see Sigourney Weaver return to the Alien franchise on the big screen? Let us know in the comments.
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