Neill Blomkamp's ALIEN sequel has been sentenced to the seventh circle of Production Hell, but that doesn't mean we can't talk about it! If we believe hard enough, it might just come back. In a recent interview with Icons of Fright, ALIENS star Michael Biehn explains a little bit about the film that could/should/might have been, displaying more than a little savvy about the industry in the process:
I think when they put that out there and have pictures with me as Hicks again, people were excited and though I’m not into online stuff much, my kids saw a lot about it on Reddit. They were excited. They’re planning on bringing me and Newt back and at this point Newt will be around twenty-seven years old. I know that every actress in Hollywood is going to want to play this one, it’s really a passing of the torch between Sigourney and this younger actress who would play Newt.
It would keep the franchise alive and the studios would make money, because that’s what the bottom line is now: money. That’s why you end up seeing TERMINATOR 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 10 and THE FAST AND FURIOUS 7, 8, 9, and 10. So when that happens, the ALIENS film, maybe that will be one more movie that I can make a mark with, plus, Neill is such a talented guy. When I saw DISTRICT 9 for the first time, I was glued to my seat, going “wow”. So I’m hopeful for that one.
Biehn also expressed his belief that the film will eventually be brought back to life, also supporting the PROMETHEUS sequel that bumped it from production:
They’re talking about doing another ALIENS movie, with Neill Blomkamp, and Fox came and announced it and Sigourney (Weaver) has come out and announced it. The basic idea is acting like ALIEN3 and 4 never existed, so if you go on Neill Blomkamp’s site, everyone can see all of the artwork for that. I know Ridley Scott is doing his movie first and is going to be the executive producer on this one, so I’m really looking forward to that.
I know that Ridley’s focus is on the second PROMETHEUS (now titled ALIEN: COVENANT) and I’m sure that he and Fox both don’t want that and Neill’s movie to come out right next to each other, because they’re kind of two different worlds, with ALIENS taking place thousands of years later, which is how they explained it all to me, but at the same time, they want to give them a similar feel. I know they’re putting the brakes on Neill’s movie just for a little while, but I really think that it would be embarrassing to Ridley and Fox and Sigourney if they just didn’t make the movie.
Carrie Henn has been the subject of much hot discussion lately, but obviously her continued presence in the franchise is pretty much a priority. Honestly, the picture Biehn paints is much more enticing than Ridley Scott's ALIEN: COVENANT, especially considering that this would be a return to Cameron's ALIENS universe, which might not exactly benefit from Scott's signature style. More on this story if it ever breaks. Stay strong, everyone.