There are few franchises that have endured in the way that theAlienfranchise has endured. For nearly four decades Ridley Scott’s creation has found a way to keep going, even if all of the entries haven’t been able to live up to the first two movies. This summerAlien: Covenantlooked like it was poised to totally reinvigorate the series withRidley Scott back at the helmand the Xenomorphs back on the big screen. That didn’t really work out and now the other prequels/sequels the director has planned may be in jeopardy.
The Hollywood Reporterrecently ran a very detailed piece about summer franchise movies and the future of those respective franchise. WithAlien, Fox is reassessing the series after the mixed reception and disappointing box office take forAlien: Covenant. Here is what they had to say about it.
“Sources say Fox will have to reassess two intended sequels Scott has pitched while he is off helming Getty kidnapping movie All the Money in the World and then drug lord drama The Cartel.”
Prior to the release ofAlien: Covenanteverything seemed great. The trailers had everyone really excited. This movie looked like it was going to give fans what they wanted withPrometheusand, in many ways, it did. But it still couldn’t satisfy in the way the studio had hoped and it suffered as a result. The movie only made $232 million worldwide. Working from a $97 million production budget, that isn’t exactly great. Especially when you consider thatPrometheus, a movie that is extremely divisive among fans of the franchise, grossed over $400 million worldwide.
Ridley Scottis already working on the script forAlien: Awakening, the proposed title for theAlien: Covenantsequel. Reportedly, that movie would be getting us up to the point of the originalAlienandfinish this prequel trilogy. Though, during the press tour forAlien: Covenant, he said that he could imagine making as many as six moreAlienmovies. That seems incredibly doubtful now. That would be incrediblyfrustrating for fans, given howAlien: Covenantended. It didn’t exactly resolve in a satisfying way in the sense that it left a lot on the table. There was clearly intended to be another installment.
In the meantime, Ridley Scott is keeping himself busy and that will give Fox some time to mull things over. MaybeAlien: Covenantwill do really well on Blu-ray? Maybe Ridley Scott can find a way to do a sequel at a reduced cost? He seems determined to do it one way or the other. It would at least be nice to see him finish up the story he’s set in motion. If not, this could wind up being a pretty unceremonious end to one of the greatest sci-fi franchises in history.
