Ridley Scott to Direct the Alien Prequel - Alien 5

An exciting bit of news was just announced by Twentieth Century Fox: Esteemed Filmmaker Ridley Scott is slated to direct the 5th film in the Alien franchise. 'Alien 5' (whose title is not yet known) will be a prequel to the original 1979 Alien film, also directed by Ridley Scott, with a storyline that reveals how the eponymous species of deadly creatures came to be on the planet where Lt. Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and company first encountered them.

The project came to fruition after screenwriter Jon Spaihts successfully pitched his concept to Ridley Scott and his brother, Tony Scott, as a joint venture between Twentieth Century Fox and the Scott brothers' production company, Scott Free. Ridley Scott was originally presumed to be the film's producer only, until Fox announced that Scott would also direct in the place of Erik Rinsch (still listed as the project's director on IMDb as of this writing).

For fans of the Alien series, this announcement is cause to rejoice. Although Scott has produced a varied assortment of well-produced and well-received mainstream fare in the past twenty-odd years (American Gangster, Black Hawk Down, Gladiator and Thelma & Louise, to name only a few), his largest following can be attributed to a pair of science fiction cult classics filmed early in his career: 1979's Alien and 1982's Blade Runner. The making of Alien 5 will give Scott the opportunity to prove to fans that he's still capable of making sci-fi magic.

The decades-spanning Alien franchise has held a fascinating trajectory, with four very different films by four unique, visionary directors. The first two entries in the series are, of course, utter masterpieces. Ridley Scott's original Alien is not only a science fiction classic, it's a triumph of art direction, screenwriting and cinematography -- not to mention one of the greatest horror films of all time. And where the first movie was all about style and suspense, the follow-up by James Cameron (of Terminator and Titanic fame), 1986's Aliens, is pure blockbuster, and easily one of the smartest, most riveting action films of all time.

The third and fourth entries in the series have some good things going for them, but they're a bit too muddled to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with their predecessors. 1992's Alien 3, the first feature by David Fincher (who has gone on to direct such great films as Fight Club and Zodiac), had a lot of style and a decent storyline with an unforgettable climax, but the screenplay was too cloudy to allow Fincher's talent to shine through. Jean-Pierre Jeunet -- the French filmmaker best known for directing Amelie, but most-appreciated by this author for co-directing the brilliant French films City of Lost Children and Delicatessen -- was chosen to direct the most recent entry in the franchise, 1997's Alien Resurrection. The fourth Alien film is a worthwhile watch for fans of the series and Jeunet's oddball sensibility adds a welcome does of levity, but the film suffers from its failure to decide whether or not it wants to take itself seriously.

With the announcement that Ridley Scott will return to direct the Alien prequel, there's new reason to hope that the series might be able to find its way again. By going back in time to examine events leading up to the species' first encounter with humanity, eager audiences can also be assured that Alien 5 will provide fascinating insight into the origins of the ravenous, parasitic beasts originally dreamed up by Swiss designer H.R. Giger. The film is currently in pre-production, and is expected to be released sometime in 2011.

Sources:
www.variety.com/article/VR1118006722.html
www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=25459
www.imdb.com