Legendary director Ridley Scott has signaled his departure from the Alien franchise, stating: "I believe I've done all I can."
The 87-year-old English filmmaker, who helmed the groundbreaking 1979 sci-fi horror Alien before revitalizing the series with 2012's Prometheus, recently told ScreenRant: "As for its future direction, I feel my contribution is complete, and I simply hope the journey continues."
Scott has entrusted the Alien universe to capable successors, with Fede Álvarez's successful Alien: Romulus and Noah Hawley's FX series Alien: Earth currently in development. Alien: Romulus performed so strongly that a sequel is already underway. Additionally, numerous Alien crossover references appear in the upcoming Predator: Badlands.
During the same discussion, Scott reflected on how the franchise declined after 1997's Alien: Resurrection, which motivated him to reboot the series with Prometheus. Scott continued this revival with 2017's Alien: Covenant, which remained the latest mainline installment until last year's Alien: Romulus.
"I felt the series lost its momentum after the fourth installment," he explained. "I consider my original film quite strong, and James Cameron's sequel worked well, but the subsequent entries lacked quality. I thought, 'This can't be the end of a franchise that should stand alongside major universes like Star Trek or Star Wars,' which I find truly remarkable."
The Alien Films in Chronological Sequence
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He continued: "Years later, I decided to resurrect the franchise from nothing—starting with a completely blank slate. Damon Lindelof and I developed Prometheus through intensive collaboration.
"The concept felt timely and well-received. Audiences were clearly hungry for more. I declared, 'This needs to take flight.' When no one else stepped forward, I returned to helm Alien Covenant, which also found success. Regarding future developments, I believe my work here is finished, and I simply hope the story continues to evolve."
While Scott has confirmed he won't direct additional Alien films, he served as producer on Alien: Romulus and acts as executive producer for Alien: Earth through his Scott Free production company. Regarding Alien: Earth, its debut full trailer has given fans substantial material to analyze and anticipate.
