A new Alien movie is picking up steam at 20th Century Studios, especially now that Pacific Rim Uprising star Cailee Spaeny is on track to star in the film.
The Alien franchise was launched in 1979 with the release of director Ridley Scott's science fiction horror film, Alien. While James Cameron's Aliens was acclaimed, subsequent sequels have not been as well-received, even when being helmed by proven talent like David Fincher, who directed the third installment.
Deadline reports that Spaeny is currently in talks to star in the latest effort to revive the Alien franchise. Spaeny, who has also starred in Bad Times at the El Royale and Mare of Easttown, has reportedly been the top choice for the lead role for some time now after multiple meetings with director Fede Alvarez and producers. Alvarez landed the directing job on the new Alien film after his pitch convinced producer Scott Free to make the project a top priority. Efforts to begin production on the new Alien film by early 2023 gained momentum after the most recent script was delivered.
At this stage, the executives of the new Alien film are still in the process of choosing other cast members. Of course, details on the characters these case members would play and the storyline for the project is currently a closely-guarded secret. That said, fans of the franchise know to expect the Xenomorphs to play a key role in the film, undoubtedly as the source of terror for a new group of humans.
This is hardly the first attempt to produce a new Alien film in recent years. Perhaps the most famous effort was Neill Blomkamp's canceled Alien sequel, which would have been a continuation of the franchise as opposed to the prequels Scott has been making, starting with Prometheus.
Evidently, getting an Alien film off the ground is no simple task, and even Scott had to rethink plans for the Alien franchise after Alien: Covenant disappointed at the box office. Whether or not Alvarez can change the fortunes of the franchise remains to be seen, but Hulu's Prey was released to rave reviews and proved the Predator franchise still had legs under the right director, so perhaps the same will be true for the new Alien film.
The Alien films are available on Disney Plus.
Source: Deadline