Ridley Scott's Alien and James Cameron's more action-packed follow-up are undeniable classics, but it wouldn't be unfair to say that the franchise has declined in quality over the years. There was a lot of excitement when Scott decided to revisit the world he created back in 2012, and while Prometheus did take things in a bold new direction, it wasn't the terrifying return to form Xenomorph fans were hooping for (the less said about Alien: Covenant the better).
The now Disney-owned 20th Century Studios is planning to take Alien to the small screen for the first time with a new FX series, and showrunner Noah Hawley has shared some new details during an interview with Esquire.
Though the premise certainly sounds interesting, fans who prefer the more claustrophobic chills of the original films might be disappointed to hear that the show will focus more on the advancements in AI and a race to create cutting edge androids (sorry Bishop... artificial persons) than acid-secreting creatures chasing crew members through dimly-lit corridors.
"It's set on Earth of the future. At this moment, I describe that as Edison versus Westinghouse versus Tesla," Hawley tells Esquire. "Someone's going to monopolize electricity. We just don't know which one it is ... In the movies, we have this Weyland-Yutani Corporation, which is clearly also developing artificial intelligence-but what if there are other companies trying to look at immortality in a different way, with cyborg enhancements or transhuman downloads? Which of those technologies is going to win?"
"Alien is a fascinating story because it's not just a monster movie; it's about how we're trapped between the primordial past and the artificial intelligence of our future, where both trying to kill us," he continued. "As Sigourney Weaver said in that second movie, 'I don't know which species is worse. At least they don't [frick] each other over for a percentage.' Even if the show was 60% of the best horror-action on the planet, there's still 40% where we have to ask, 'What are we talking about it, beneath it all?' Thematically, it has to be interesting. It's humbling to get to play with the iconography of this world."
We're certainly intrigued by Hawley's comments, but what do you guys make of this update? Be sure to let us know in the usual place.