BIG news Alien fans! It turns out Neill Blomkamp's Alien 5 will enter pre-production as early as next week! Not only that, but director Neill Blomkamp himself also confirmed that Alien star Sigourney Weaver will officially reprise her role as Ellen Ripley, as we all expected she would. This also lends credibility to the recent news of Michael Biehn's presumed return to the franchise!
This exciting update comes to us from Entertainment Tonight, during an interview they held with both Blomkamp and Weaver during the red carpet premiere for Chappie.
When they asked Sigourney if Ripley would be coming back she responded by saying: "There are two factors [Neill Blomkamp] needs: Ripley and the Aliens".
When ET asked Blomkamp about when he plans to start on Alien 5, he replied by saying as early as next week. Following this question the reporter also asked if Sigourney would be cast, to which Neill responded with: "She'll be in the cast," Blomkamp said. "She is the Alien franchise, to me, so yeah." - ET
So there you have it! Sigourney Weaver will reprise her role as Lt. Ellen Ripley and production for Alien 5 begins as early as next week! Exciting times ahead for Alien fans, so be sure to keep it locked to Scified for the latest Alien 5 movie coverage! Special thanks to Shambs for sharing this news in the Alien forum!
Neill Blomkamp's Alien 5 project was inevitably canceled following the merger between 20th Century Fox and Disney. Blomkamp had hoped to revive characters Hicks and Ripley for a new film, rewriting the Alien timeline, chalking up Alien 3 and Resurrection to mere bad dreams. Studio executives decided to can the project and instead took the franchise in a new direction, tapping Fede Alvarez to direct Alien: Romulus.
Neill Blomkamp's Alien 5 is indefinitely shelved.
