With Alien: Romulus now playing in theaters, franchise star Sigourney Weaver is naturally being asked questions about the four Alien movies she starred in. In a chat with Deadline this week, Weaver reflects on one sequel in particular, while also answering a big question about the potential future of Ellen Ripley: would she ever play the character one more time?
But first, Weaver reflects on David Fincher’s Alien 3, which has become something of a cult classic for Alien fans over the years. The nihilistic film picks up after the events of Aliens, killing off Newt and Hicks entirely off-screen and stranding Ellen Ripley on a harsh prison planet.
We know that Fincher himself has essentially disowned the polarizing third installment in the franchise, but how does Sigourney Weaver feel about 1992’s Alien 3 all these years later?
“Well, I could feel that David had to get on the phone and fight every day for us to shoot what he wanted to the next day. And I’m sorry that he didn’t get a chance to make the script his own before we started,” Weaver explains. “That makes filmmaking very difficult.”
She reflects, “I recall that Vincent Ward’s original script had been about monks in a monastery and Ripley was in a coma for half of it. So, I keenly felt the lack of studio support. That was a transition moment when studios stopped being about ‘let’s make great films’ and started being about ‘let’s not lose money.’ They had the great idea to put David Fincher aboard for his first film, but then not to support the guy was very idiotic. It helped shooting in England so we could get on with things to an extent.”
“I heard recently that David has disowned the project and I’m sorry about that because I loved working with him, and I think we made a good film,” Weaver also notes in the new chat. “I’m glad he got a chance to do his version. It was a great ensemble.”
And what about a return in a future installment in the Alien franchise?
Weaver comments, “I feel like [Ripley’s] never far away from me, but on the other hand I have yet to read a script that said ‘you have got to do this.’ So for me, she is in this other dimension, safe from the Alien for the time being. I don’t really think about it, but you know, it’s not completely impossible, and certainly a lot of good filmmakers are inspired by the material.”
“How much does the public really need or want another Ripley movie?” Weaver ponders. “I don’t really sit around and think about it, but if it came up, I would consider it. It has come up a bunch of times, but I’m also busy doing other things. Ripley has earned her rest.”
[Related] Fede Alvarez Teases a Hidden Ellen Ripley Easter Egg in ‘Alien: Romulus’
‘Alien 3’
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