Uruguayan filmmaker Federico Alvarez, director of Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe, is working on a seventh sequel in the Alien franchise, Alien: Romulus. Deadline reported that the director was speaking to fellow filmmaker Guillermo del Toro at the DGA Latino Summit when he announced that Ridley Scott viewed the film. Alvarez then said Ridley thought the film was “f***ing great.”
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Ridley Scott is critical of filmmakers who touch his work.
Alvarez expressed how anxious and nervous he was to show the film to Scott. The Uruguayan director replied, “Everyone gave me the head’s up that Ridley Scott is really tough. He really tough, particularly if it has something to do his movies.”
Alvarez continued by saying, “He was really tough on Blade Runner [2049], which I thought was a masterpiece, and he had issues with it because it’s really hard for him because it’s his work…I asked him about the new Top Gun and he’s like ‘Meh.’ I’m like, ‘What are you talking about? And he was like, ‘My brother’s was original and this is like eh.’ He really respected it but you could see how tough he was. So, I was like, ‘There’s no way I win this one.”
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The last two alien films divided audiences.
Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, the previous two instalments in the Alien franchise, were met with mixed reviews. Prometheus has become a cult favourite amongst a faction of the fanbase. Nevertheless, the series has not been as popular as in its heyday when star Sigourney Weaver led the charge against the terrifying Xenomorphs.
The general moviegoers and critics were disappointed with the films as they didn’t seem to connect as well with audiences as the previous films. Prometheus took quite a left turn with the Alien story by attempting to put more depth into the Alien mythology.
Although many fans enjoyed the previous two films, others weren’t so happy. A lot of the story elements focused heavily on the work of authors like Erich von Daniken and his 1960s book Chariot of the Gods. Daniken is famous for promoting the idea of ancient astronaut aliens who visited Earth in the distant past to seed life on the planet. According to von Daniken, alien gods left clues of their presence, the pyramids of Giza and the mysterious Nazca Line in Peru being notable examples.
These narrative threads were all over the storyline for Prometheus, and perhaps the fantastical, philosophical elements of the story created too much of a disconnect with large swathes of the movie-going public.
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The Xenomorphs Return
Another problem that Prometheus had was a need for more Xenomorphs. The aliens only start their terror campaign at the end of the film. Most of the film focuses on the backstory of how these frightening critters were created.
2017’s Alien: Covenant featured more of the alien predators. While it was a good film, it also couldn’t match audience expectations. It attempted to combine the deep philosophical storyline of Prometheus with the creepier horror aspects of the first four films. In attempting to combine the two approaches, the film needed help finding a broader audience looking for a horror film set in space.
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Will Alvarez be able to satisfy audience expectations?
Alvarez claimed Ridley Scott likes the new sequel; hopefully, their interaction was genuine, and fans can look forward to another great film in the Alien franchise. Let’s hold thumbs that Alvarez can make a film honouring the past and breaking new ground. The director specialises in horror films like Evil Dead. His penchant for the horror genre offers a clue to the tone of Alien: Romulus. It will likely focus more on the horror aspects than the philosophical elements of the previous two instalments.
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TL;DR
- Alien: Romulus director says Ridley Scott thinks new Alien film is “f***ing great.”
- The previous two Alien films failed to connect with a broad audience.
- Let’s hope Alvarez has made a great Alien film featuring more Xenomorphs and horror.
What do you think of Ridley Scott’s previous Alien films, and do you think Alien: Romulus will connect with fans?
Ridley Scott Reveals His True Feelings About Alien: Romulus Written by Google Web Stories for Fortress of Solitude
