The Xenomorph that we all know and love has been through the wringer. Between Alien: Resurrection, Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem, and Alien: Covenant, cinema’s most iconic creature has not had the best representation since its seminal appearance in the 1970s classic Alien. Ever since Covenant was released back in 2017, there were rumblings of a potential sequel that would tie the prequel series to Ridley Scott’s original film. But that never came to fruition as Covenant heavily underperformed and was not beloved by fans. The franchise essentially died again – until now.
The Disney/Fox merger left a lot of intellectual properties in limbo, and the Alien franchise was one of them. Audiences didn’t know if the family-friendly mouse house would continue producing films revolving around a chest-bursting alien, but that all changed in 2020 when they announced Fargo’s Noah Hawley would be creating a new show for Hulu. As if that wasn’t enough, last week, the studio confirmed that Evil Dead’s Fede Alvarez would be directing a new Alien movie with Ridley Scott coming back to produce the film.
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So the question is, should they bring back Sigourney Weaver’s genre-defining character of Ripley? If so, is this going to be another Halloween or Scream type of nostalgia-fest?
Alien Franchise: The Story So Far
20th Century Studios
Cinematically, we last saw Ripley in 1997s Alien: Resurrection, a critically panned film that effectively smothered the franchise. Depending on which alternate ending audiences saw, Ripley either returned to a ravaged Earth or ended her journey aboard the Betty. Ripley has undoubtedly been through a lot between all four Alien movies circa 2004. Between her first encounter with the Xenomorph and her last duel with the “newborn,” some might say that the road to bring Ripley back is closed. Everyone except District 9’s Neil Blomkamp. His potential story featured Ripley picking up arms again right after James Cameron’s Aliens, effectively retconning Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection to continue Ripley’s story. Infamously, Ridley Scott chose another direction and decided to tell somewhat of a Xenomorph origin story with 2012s Prometheus.
Between these movies, Fox tried their hand at resuscitating the Alien franchise with Alien Vs. Predator. Not surprisingly, these movies did not do particularly well at the box office and were not received well by fans. With Prometheus, Ridley Scott had the opportunity to craft a solid story that would truly connect to his original movie, but the former delved into philosophical ideas about androids and religion and only raised more questions. Alien: Covenant, on the other hand, had closer DNA to the original Alien, but this movie also tangled itself up in nonsensical ideas that were never really realized to its fullest potential.
So with one series of films that ended her story, and one series of films that had nothing to do with her story, it seems like Ripley has nowhere to go. Scott could potentially cave into the nostalgia trend and bring back Ripley (somehow) for one last hurrah, but this would not make sense from a timeline perspective.
Alien Franchise: The Current State of Affairs
20th Century Fox
When Noah Hawley first announced the Alien series, fans were ecstatic about the idea that this would be a continuation of Ridley Scott’s universe. There are undoubtedly many stories to tell within this universe, and the streaming formula allows for a great deal of character development. However, late last year, Hawley said that his series would be the very first Alien story, i.e., set way before Scott’s prequel series. This means that Ripley would not be a part of this adventure (perhaps for good measure), but that begs the question, do audiences want a prequel to the prequel series?
Earlier this month, we were greeted with the news that Don’t Breathe’s Fede Alvarez would be writing and directing a new standalone Alien movie, with apparently (at least at the time of this writing) no connection to Ripley. The fact that the film will be streaming directly on Hulu means that it would not have to be censored. And considering Alvarez’s track record, audiences may finally get a dose of true, contained Xenomorph horror.
These two projects clearly show that Disney understands the value of the Alien franchise, but whether bringing Ripley back is one that is truly dependent on the direction that both projects go down on-and, more importantly, how they end. The series could very much drop Easter eggs about a future Ripley, and the movie could very well reference Ripley’s encounter with the Xenomorph, but as for bringing her back, that ship may have left this part of the galaxy.
The question of a Ripley revival has been on the minds of many an Alien fan. There were even hopes that Alien: Covenant’s sequel would finally lead to a film featuring Sigourney Weaver. With the actress still actively participating in Hollywood, one would think that the studio would perhaps dabble in this idea (perhaps they briefly did with Blomkamp’s treatment). But Disney/Fox has decided to go down a different path. From a business standpoint, these new projects have a lot of longevity as they inject new life to the franchise and allow for more significant, more complex stories rather than focusing on a singular plot point. After all, how many times can audiences watch a former scream queen be put through the wringer again (see 2018’s Halloween)?
So while bringing Ripley back may prove logistically difficult from a timeline perspective, her return could also be somewhat disingenuous to fans. The first few Alien films told a story that has since concluded. Scott’s prequel series attempted at telling a story that wasn’t received well, so maybe these new projects should disregard what came before and carve out an original path. One that honors the past and allows for bigger stories in the future. Because, after all, in space, no one can hear you scream.
