Director Ridley Scott has announced that he’ll direct two (yes, two) prequels to his 1979 sci-fi hit, “Alien.” Scott announced last July that he would direct a single prequel, but apparently the project has spawned a prequel-sequel, if there is such a thing. If the plan bears fruit, Scott will put a definitive stamp on a franchise which thus far has seen four films, each helmed by a different director (James Cameron, David Fincher and Jean-Pierre Jeunet directed the sequels).
Speaking to MTV, Scott revealed some of the details behind the first prequel: “It’s set in 2085, about 30 years before Sigourney [Weaver's character Ellen Ripley]. It’s fundamentally about going out to find out ‘Who the hell was that Space Jockey?’ The guy who was sitting in the chair in the alien vehicle — there was a giant fellow sitting in a seat on what looked to be either a piece of technology or an astronomer’s chair. … [The film] is about the discussion of terraforming — taking planets and planetoids and balls of earth and trying to terraform, seed them with the possibilities of future life.”
Scott has been planning the first prequel for several years. The screenplay is currenty in its fourth draft stage. Scott’s protege, TV commercial director Carl Rinsch, had been slated to direct the new project at first, but 20th Century Fox, the studio that owns the franchise, apparently balked at the idea of handing over the reins of a high profile project to a first-time feature director. While Scott had intended to act as producer on the project, he will now assume the director’s mantle as well.
The new films, in what is quickly becoming the de rigueur choice for the sci-fi genre, will be shot in 3D. As the 3D process tends to darken film quality, Scott will shoot in ultra-bright conditions, and will then adjust the visual quality of the film in post-production to attain a darker effect.
The target date for the release of the first prequel is late 2011, or early 2012.