Alien Director Ridley Scott Plans For Up To Three More ‘Prometheus’ Films

Director Ridley Scott has revealed that there may be up to another three Prometheus movies to come before the franchise reaches full narrative alignment with the original Alien, reports Variety.

Scott’s 1979 blockbuster redefined the sci-fi genre, and his 2012 release, Prometheus, was Scott’s first attempt to provide fans with some backstory and context to the classic Alien, which reportedly had audience members running out of theaters in terror when it was released 36 years ago.

The film gave Alien fans a window on events that preceded the Nostromo crew’s perilous encounters with the biologically-engineered Alien xenomorph, a perfect predator which has become one of the most iconic monster creations in movie history.

Ridley Scott has always refused to use the word “prequel” when discussing Prometheus, preferring to describe it as a standalone movie, but set within the overall Alien universe.

Speaking to German website FilmFutter, Scott explained that the direct links between Prometheus and Alien would not be explained in Prometheus 2, which is scheduled for a 2017 release.

“It won’t be in the next one. It will be in the one after this one or maybe even a fourth film before we get back into the Alien franchise. The whole point of it is to explain the Alien franchise and to explain the how and why of the creation of the Alien itself. I always thought of the Alien as kind of a piece of bacterial warfare. I always thought that that original ship, was a battleship, holding these biomechanoid creatures that were all about destruction.”

Prometheus received a mixed reaction when it was released, with long-time fans of the Alien franchise disappointed at a lack of continuity, the extent of narrative divergence away from the original movies, and a limited cameo appearance for the xenomorph.

Others enjoyed the more subtle and philosophical slant of the movie, which, despite leaving a lot of unanswered questions, explored some cerebral themes such as evolution, the ethical boundaries of biotech, hubris, the quest for immortality, and the dangers of artificial intelligence.

Prometheus also won plaudits for its visual beauty, cinematography, special effects, and intricate set design. Commercially, the film was a success, grossing $403.4 million at the box office from a budget of $120–130 million.

Prometheus 2 will start production in 2016, and little is known about the plot. What is known is that Michael Fassbender will be reprising his role as the synthetic android, David, and Noomi Rapace will also return as the brave and indestructible scientist-explorer Elizabeth Shaw.

[Image via 20th Century Fox]