It's Official; Neil Blomkamp Will Direct The New Alien Film

[Mitch Henessey]

A little while ago some concept art for a potential Alien film surfaced online from Neil Blomkamp's Twitter account, and you can take a look at the pics inside the spoiler tags.

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When the pics were released, Blomkamp directing another Alien film was nothing more than a "What if?" fantasy, but after a recent interview, it looks like we're taking a few steps towards the maybe phase for Blomkamp as the director:

“There was a reason,” he telles Collider in response to being asked about the aforementioned art. “I wanted to make that film. I still may make that film. [Laughs] It may happen. But I did it on my own time. Like when ‘Chappie’ was winding down in post and I had available time, I started to work on it. It was also from talking to Sigourney [Weaver] during the making of this. I mean, I asked her about ‘Alien’ all the time.

‘Alien’ and ‘Aliens’ are my favorite films,” he adds. “So I genuinely wanted to make that film, I came up with the story, I came up with way more art than I put out and I never officially spoke to Fox about it, but Fox wanted to make it. So, I kind of touched on it and I didn’t know what to do, and I didn’t know if I was just gonna go leave directing for a whole bunch of time and then I was like, ‘I might as well put some art out.’ But I may make it. I don’t know. That’s where it stands.”

If we're talking about ideal choices to direct another Alien film, Blomkamp's name is at the top of the list for best choices, but the thought of another Alien film doesn't excite me.

You have to go all the way back to Alien 3 to remember the last quality Alien film, and at this point, I think it's safe to say the franchise peaked after Aliens. Alien: Resurrection was a pretty lousy film, and I know both films are crossovers, so they're not 100% pure Alien films, but when you consider all the hype and expectations behind them, the AVP movies were disappointing (especially Requiem).

Blomkamp is building a friendly relationship with Weaver, and that's a good thing, but how do you fix the massive problem with Ripley? We all know they killed off her character in Alien 3, and they had to pull the clone card in Resurrection to cover up any gaps in logic. Of course, they could go with a reboot/remake, or it's possible they'll go with the clone option again.

Personally, I'm more interested to see what happens in the Prometheus sequel. I'm not against another Alien film, and I'm sure Blomkamp will prove himself as a good choice, if it happens, but when I think about all the post Alien 3 failures, morbid curiosity is the best I can do for reasons to watch a new Alien film.

Is Neil Blomkamp a good choice to direct the next Alien film?

Are you interested in a new Alien film?

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I'm down with it. Just ditch Ripley in favour of Newt and it works. Just say that the ship they were all on was intercepted and Hicks and Newt were taken elsewhere, whilst Ripley's story continues with Alien 3.

I'll reserve judgment on whether Blomkamp is the right man for the job after Chappie. So far he's had a hit and a miss with me.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

To me, the Alien franchise is pretty much on a par with the Terminator franchise - 2 amazing and contrasting first couple of films followed by films that rate from sub-par to utter crap.

Prometheus is an interesting x-factor as I remember the buzz around it being about how much it will play into the Alien mythology and time-line. Ridley Scott seemed to vary between out-right denying it's connection to then dropping more hints and clues within the film and in interviews.

Personally, I'd rather not have someone re-make or re-imagine or whatever the Alien films while Ridley tinkers with Prometheus.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Chappie helmer Neill Blomkamp’s next movie will be an Aliens film for 20th Century Fox. Sources say Ridley Scott’s Scott Free will produce the pic, which Blomkamp will direct. He will develop a script that is set after the Prometheus 2 story. Scott, who helmed the original Alien for Fox in 1979, is also set to direct and produce the Prometheus sequel.

Sources add that there is no script for Prometheus 2 or the new Aliens film.

Blomkamp, who also co-wrote and helmed Elysium and District 9, used an Instagram post to confirm the project he had talked about online in recent months:

http://deadline.com/2015/02/alien-neil-blomkamp-directing-fox-movie-1201376439/

No official news on Weaver returning as Ripley yet, but I like Jake's idea for ditching Ripley in favor of Newt, if Weaver doesn't return.

If you're giving me a choice between the two, I'll take the Prometheus sequel over a new Alien film.

It'll be interesting to see how critics and fans react to Prometheus 2 before the new Alien film hits. You have to believe this puts more pressure on Scott and Prometheus 2, because if the movie bombs at the box office, and if the vast majority of critics trash the sequel with negative reviews, Prometheus 2 will kill some of or most of the anticipation for a new Alien film.

With all that said, there's a slight chance for a rebirth, and the Alien series desperately needs one. Prometheus is a solid enough foundation for a fresh start, and hopefully the sequel is successful, because the Alien franchise has been through more than enough tailspins over the years.