Good Idea or Bad? Looking at various sci fi and fantasy television projects currently in the works and pondering whether they will fly or crash.
What Is It?
The first Alien film debuted in 1979 and dealt with the crew of an interstellar freighter fighting for their lives after a dangerous alien xenomorph is brought onboard. That film turned into a Box Office success and led to three direct sequels, two Alien vs. Predator mashups, and two prequels. Now a television series is in develpment to carry on the franchise.
What Is in the Works?
FX has given the greenlight to a television series that will continue the story of humans vs. aliens. Legion‘s Noah Hawley will be writing and running the show, and while a synopsis has not been released, he had the following to say about the direction of the show in an interview with Vanity Fair:
It’s not a Ripley story. She’s one of the great characters of all time, and I think the story has been told pretty perfectly, and I don’t want to mess with it. It’s a story that’s set on Earth also. The alien stories are always trapped… Trapped in a prison, trapped in a space ship. I thought it would be interesting to open it up a little bit so that the stakes of “What happens if you can’t contain it?” are more immediate.
On some level it’s also a story about inequality. You know, one of the things that I love about the first movie is how ’70s a movie it is, and how it’s really this blue collar space-trucker world in which Yaphet Kotto and Harry Dean Stanton are basically Waiting for Godot. They’re like Samuel Beckett characters, ordered to go to a place by a faceless nameless corporation. The second movie is such an ’80s movie, but it’s still about grunts. Paul Reiser is middle management at best. So, it is the story of the people you send to do the dirty work.
In mine, you’re also going to see the people who are sending them. So you will see what happens when the inequality we’re struggling with now isn’t resolved. If we as a society can’t figure out how to prop each other up and spread the wealth, then what’s going to happen to us? There’s that great Sigourney Weaver line to Paul Reiser where she says, “I don’t know which species is worse. At least they don’t fuck each other over for a percentage.”
The series is scheduled to start filming in Spring 2022 and will probably debut later that year.
Good Idea or Bad?
Alien is a franchise that has generated eight movies so far, some which count as all-time classics and others which are better forgotten. The story has also been carried on in comics, an extensive novel series, and even a web series, so you really have to wonder how much more a television show can add to what essentially started out as a big budget monster movie. It is quite obvious that from a corporate perspective this is designed to capitalize on the name recognition of the franchise. But the fact that Noah Hawley is involved gives it some credibility beyond just a money grab. His Legion series is a must-watch mind-bending genre entry, and he has already scored a win on the reboot front with his award-winning Fargo series.
But is Alien at the point of franchise fatigue, and is there a property riper for a reboot? I’m thinking that Starship Troopers might offer more opportunity, especially as an ongoing series. The original film from 1997 is well-regarded, and while it did have sequels and spin-offs, those received little attention and are mostly looked down upon. Like Alien, this property offers humans vs. xenomorphs and could be better suited for a multi-season run. Or perhaps a series based on the cheesy but fun ’80s film The Last Starfighter? Just suggestions, but those properties seem to offer more opportunities.
The last two Alien films (Prometheus and Alien: Covenant) received mixed reviews and performed only moderately at the Box Office, so perhaps this franchise is spent or just needs a rest. Though Hawley’s involvement is encouraging and maybe he can breathe some new life into it. I like the direction he has indicated he will go with the series. I don’t consider this a terrible idea, but I do think there are other properties better suited for a reboot/revival.
Notable Facts
Alien first debuted on the big screen in 1979 with Ridley Scott directing a script written by Dan O’Bannon. Swiss artist H.R. Giger provided many of the designs and he and O’Bannon had previously been attached to Alejandro Jodorowsky’s failed attempt to bring Frank Herbert’s Dune to the big screen. The core story of Alien had similarities to the 1958 film It! The Terror from Beyond Space and 1965’s Planet of the Vampires, though O’Bannon has downplayed any connection to those earlier B-Movies. The 1986 sequel Aliens was directed by James Cameron and some consider it equal to if not better than the first film. Two more direct sequels followed, and then came the Alien vs. Predator entries and the two prequels (the latter both directed by Ridley Scott). An Alien television series was considered as far back in the early ’80s, but that idea was scrapped when the sequel received a greenlight. There were also plans for an animated Alien television series in the early ’90s, but that never went forward.
Do you think that an Alien television series is a good idea or bad? Chime in with your comments below.
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It’s a bad idea
I like the Alien franchise, but in the hands of FX? I have my doubts about that, although Legion was a blast.
But no matter to me, as I ignore such speculations about shows that are not out yet, and simply wait and see.
Funny how so many folks get hooked into such news that is not news, as if, ha.
Not particularly interested. Quotes like “On some level it’s also a story about inequality” turn me off from the outset.
My feeling is meh. I’d rather see a series created around The Legends Of Dune trilogy prequels to Dune, now THAT would be awesome!
How about a Blake’s 7 reboot?
A Blake’s 7 reboot was supposed to be in the works and that is something that many would be up for. It does not appear to be making much progress, though.
I’m game for anything Alien. For one thing I would like to see the third Ridley Scott prequel, Alien Paradise (or whatever), leading into the original film, even though I didn’t really like the first two prequels… but as an Alien completionist, a hole in the timeline would hurt more than another botched prequel based on esoteric pseudo-science. Generally, a TV/streaming series would be a welcome change, also because it could give Fox/Disney some time to breathe and think about what to do next in terms of Alien feature films. As much as I was excited about the idea of the Blomkamp sequel, I don’t think it would have worked, especially in terms of canon. (Rather, I’d strike the abominable Alien Resurrection from canon, or at least disregard it, leave Ripley dead, and go for a substitute-Ripley female lead in a direct sequel to Alien 3… maybe that’s what the upcoming series will do, who knows.) As for the TV series, I don’t see something like Starship Troopers having more potential in this genre or format. For one thing, it seems like a very narrowly focused universe: humans from a very homogenous & fascist society fighting very homogenous alien bugs. And nothing made today would match Verhoeven’s genius… it would probably be a spectacle, but quite boring, lacking all the fun & deep satire that had been the key to break up the very narrow framework in the original film. It seems to me like the Alien universe is a sprawling & more versatile playground, with new super-nation politics, various global & interstellar competing corporations, colonial marines, colonial administrations, grunts & colonists, scientists & soldiers, space stations, scientific, military, commerical space flight, far away human outposts, the largely still untapped Engineers culture, Weyland’s legacy, androids, Alien biology with its option to evolve into different creatures depending on the host etc.… hell, even the alleged connection to the Blade Runner universe, if you want. Depending on the story, I would probably cap the first Alien series at only a few seasons, and then explore other stories in that universe: a series set on Earth, a USCM series, which could both run longer than two seasons, a mini-series similar to Alien Isolation etc. There is potential for lots of stories—series, mini-series, higher-budget feature films, lower-budget streaming films… an Alien Cinematic Universe, if you will… if Fox & Disney really want that. I’d be game.
PS: Why isn’t anyone making Haldeman’s Forever War?! (That would be a lot more interesting than Starship Troopers.)
A Forever War TV series is supposed to be in the works, but I haven’t heard anything about it lately.