ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - May 19th

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AndyDursin
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ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - May 19th

#1 Post by AndyDursin »

Thought I'd start fresh with a new thread seeing as there was a lot of misinformation/speculation that rambled on for years about this project. Now that it's official, might as well start over.

Couple of observations:

-Confirmed as Part 2 of a trilogy
-Unsurprising this is being positioned as much more of an ALIEN prequel than a PROMETHEUS sequel.
-Noomi Rapace NOT returning?
-Based on the description you have to wonder if this is what Scott wanted to make before Damon Lindelof took the ALIEN out of PROMETHEUS!

This is the official press release and logo:
ALIEN: COVENANT
Release: October 6th, 2017

SYNOPSIS
Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created in ALIEN with ALIEN: COVENANT, the second chapter in a prequel trilogy that began with PROMETHEUS -- and connects directly to Scott’s 1979 seminal work of science fiction. Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world -- whose sole inhabitant is the "synthetic" David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition.
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mkaroly
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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#2 Post by mkaroly »

Needless to say, but I am geeked for this film. Loved PROMETHEUS and am excited to see how this all turns out. I just hope we don't get short changed on the story....hoping it's really good!

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Monterey Jack
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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#3 Post by Monterey Jack »

Has ANY movie franchise had such a bizarre evolution as the Alien films? Four "official" movies...each released an average of six years apart (and each with a different director and wildly different tone and style). Two Alien vs. Predator spin-offs. A prequel-that-sorta-wasn't-a-prequel. And now a sequel to the prequel...with the lead actress possibly missing, and with the "Alien" title restored? :shock: And how the hell is this supposed to tie in with that delayed Neil Blomkamp sequel to Aliens that was supposed to ignore the events of Aliens 3 and Ressurection?

Ow, my brain. :lol:

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#4 Post by AndyDursin »

And how the hell is this supposed to tie in with that delayed Neil Blomkamp sequel to Aliens that was supposed to ignore the events of Aliens 3 and Ressurection?
Is the Blomkamp movie the third part of this now-called "Trilogy"? I wonder if anyone has asked that question yet.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#5 Post by Monterey Jack »

AndyDursin wrote:
And how the hell is this supposed to tie in with that delayed Neil Blomkamp sequel to Aliens that was supposed to ignore the events of Aliens 3 and Ressurection?
Is the Blomkamp movie the third part of this now-called "Trilogy"? I wonder if anyone has asked that question yet.
I wouldn't wonder if the Blomkamp movie hasn't been quietly axed by this point...Scott is coming off his biggest commercial and critical success since Gladiator, while Blomkamp's Chappie is one of the most critically-reviled films of the year. Plus, Sigourney Weaver and Michael Biehn aren't getting any younger. And, even with the current fetish for cinematic "universes", it'll be really difficult to align the Alien and Prometheus timelines into anything that makes a lick of sense. Personally, I'd rather the Blomkamp film get junked and allow Scott to continue his series of films.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#6 Post by AndyDursin »

Lots of factors could be in play here. What you're saying MJ could be completely accurate, though there's also this today, which is Fox buying another sci-fi novel and talking to Blomkamp about writing/directing:

http://deadline.com/2015/11/the-gone-wo ... 201618007/

If that pans out, then clearly Fox was behind Blomkamp's film (and who knows, still might be), and wanted to work with him. Landing him for another project is likely an olive branch for what went down on ALIEN 5, to say nothing of the fact that Blomkamp's planned HALO movie went south years ago.

What it feels like to me is that Fox -- obviously -- holds Ridley Scott in a far higher place than Blomkamp, and Scott WANTED to do ALIEN. If he wasn't that interested or only wanted to produce, my gut tells me they wouldn't be making ALIEN CONVENANT and would be making Blomkamp's picture. Doing a sequel to PROMETHEUS could've gone either way -- it did well enough, but most fans' reactions were mixed -- so Fox likely was going to leave it going forward up to Ridley in terms of what they were going to do. (That would also make sense since it's taken longer than expected to crank out, and that this is being positioned as an ALIEN film, not a PROMETHEUS sequel).

Since Fox is going to do what Scott wants, and since he's serious about ALIEN CONVENANT and apparently another film behind it, then that's the direction they took -- and I fully agree with it. Like you said, he's coming off THE MARTIAN and he's been firmly set up at Fox now for years. Meanwhile, Blomkamp's output has been on a steady decline and as much as I want to see his ALIENS film, Sigourney is going to be elderly by the time they get to it. Hopefully it'll get made, if not reconfigured conceptually down the line -- assuming ALIEN CONVENANT does well enough.

That Fox still wants to work with him tells me they weren't down on him because of ELYSIUM and CHAPPIE, but that it was Ridley calling the shots on where these projects ended up. In the meantime, Blomkamp can prove himself to the studio with this new project, so there's at least that.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (October 2017) Official Synopsis Release

#7 Post by AndyDursin »

Encouraging news here:
Deadline is reporting that the Alien: Paradise Lost screenplay that was recently delivered to Scott and 20th Century Fox executives has been well-received; furthermore, it boasts “a peach of a major female role” that Rebecca Ferguson is under consideration for.
Ferguson's casting would be perfect IMO.

In the meantime, Ridley Scott talked some more about the film in an interview with The Wrap:

http://www.thewrap.com/ridley-scott-mar ... n-prequel/
Q: Your next film is a sequel to “Prometheus.”

A: Yeah. Well, really it’s “Alien.” They’re going to go to the planet where the engineers came from, and come across the evolving creature that they had made. Why did they make it? Why would they make such a terrifying beast? It felt bio-mechanoid, it felt like a weapon. And so the movie will explain that, and reintroduce the alien back into it.

There was always this discussion: Is Alien, the character, the beast, played out or not? We’ll have them all: egg, face-hugger, chest-burster, then the big boy. I think maybe we can go another round or two.

Q: When you were making the first “Alien,” did you think there was more to explore with that creature?

A: Yeah, definitely. I knew we had done something special. I mean, I knew it as soon as I met with [painter, illustrator and creature designer] H.R. Giger. He was an artist in every sense of the word, but very businesslike. There was no rock ‘n’ roll — well, there was quietly, but he never brought it to the set. And I knew I had something special with this creature that he designed. Without that creature, the film wouldn’t have been the same.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#8 Post by AndyDursin »

Katherine Waterston (Sam's daughter) lands her biggest leading role to date. prevailing over Rebecca Ferguson for the lead in ALIEN COVENANT.

http://deadline.com/2015/12/katherine-w ... 201669025/

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EXCLUSIVE: Katherine Waterston, who co-starred in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice, is set to star in Alien: Covenant, the Ridley Scott-directed sequel to his Prometheus. In what will be the biggest role of her career to date, Waterston has been cast as the lead, Daniels.

Scott, of course, had put the 20th Century Fox project on hold to do The Martian, which is in the thick of the awards-season race. Covenant is his next pic. Specific plot details are being closely guarded, but it is believed to follow the crew of the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet, who discover what they believe is an uncharted paradise. But in fact it’s a dark, dangerous world whose only inhabitant is David (Michael Fassbender), the “synthetic” and survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition.

Covenant is believed to be the first in a conceived trilogy of new films that will link the events of Prometheus with the Scott-directed 1979 classic Alien.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#9 Post by AndyDursin »

Bah


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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#10 Post by Monterey Jack »

No Noomi Rapace, casting Danny McBride(!), Gregson-Williams score...this is sounding worse and worse. :?

mkaroly
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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#11 Post by mkaroly »

As long as there are some aliens in it (or even one), I will be satisfied. Lol...looking forward to how the film looks as Scott has not failed to deliver on that front with any of his ALIEN related projects.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#12 Post by AndyDursin »

This will probably be the movie PROMETHEUS was going to be before the Lost guy convinced Scott to remove the aliens from it. Not crazy about McBride's casting but as long as he's decapitated/impregnated with a chestburster I'll be okay lol.

Interesting Katherine Waterston ended up in the film whiie Rebecca Ferguson ended up in Ryan Reynolds' Mars movie. Clearly this is a big part for a female lead and compensate for Noomis absence. My guess is either the part wasn't going to fit this film or her involvement or lack thereof will be part of the story somehow.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#13 Post by mkaroly »

AndyDursin wrote:This will probably be the movie PROMETHEUS was going to be before the Lost guy convinced Scott to remove the aliens from it. Not crazy about McBride's casting but as long as he's decapitated/impregnated with a chestburster I'll be okay lol.
Ha ha ha!!

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#14 Post by AndyDursin »

Moved up to August 4th of next year.

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Re: ALIEN: COVENANT (2017) - Scott Interview, Casting News

#15 Post by AndyDursin »

Sigourney says Blomkamp's movie is still alive...glad to hear it.
Well, I *think* it is. Ridley asked Neill NOT to make our Alien until after Prometheus 2. He (Ridley) wanted his movie to shoot and be released first. But it’s an AMAZING script, and Neill and I are REALLY excited about doing it. We’re doing other things until we can get going on that. I’d be really surprised if we DIDN’T do it, because it’s such a great script, and we love working together. So, it’s just going to take a little bit longer to get out to you, but it’ll be worth the wait.
http://www.liveforfilm.com/2016/04/21/s ... ill-lives/

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